LIBRARY 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA. 


gSm 


ELEMENTS 


OF 


RAILROAD   TRACK 

AND 

CONSTRUCTION 


BY 


WINTER  L.  WILSON 

PROFESSOR  OF  RAILROAD  ENGINEERING,   LEHIGH  UNIVERSITY 


FIRST   EDITION 
FIRST   THOUSAND 


OF  THE 

UNIVERSITY 

Of 


NEW  YORK 

JOHN  WILEY  &  SONS 

LONDON:     CHAPMAN   &  HALL,  LIMITED 

1908 


BBIEW. 


COPYRIGHT,  1908,  BY  WINTER  L.  WILSON 


Shr  Srtrttttftr  Jlrrna 
Snbrrl  Drumnuniii  and  (Company 


PREFACE 


In  this  volume  no  attempt  has  been  made  to  treat  the 
subjects  of  railroad  track  and  construction  with  any  con- 
siderable amount  of  detail,  but  rather  to  present  a  few 
of  the  fundamental  principles  in  such  manner  that  the 
inexperienced  engineering  student  can  form  a  general 
idea  of  the  subjects.  There  are  a  number  of  excellent 
treatises  on  track  which  go  into  the  subject  with  a  wealth 
of  detail  and  a  thoroughness  of  discussion  which  is  of 
immense  value  to  the  maintenance-of-way  engineer  with 
some  experience;  but,  unfortunately,  these  books  are 
not  suitable  for  class-room  work,  both  on  account  of  the 
student  not  being  able  to  appreciate  the  value  of  the 
details  and  also  on  account  of  the  impossibility  of  reading 
these  books  in  the  time  usually  given  to  such  subjects 
in  an  engineering  course.  Details  of  practice  can  be 
much  more  readily  learned  and  appreciated  from  actual 
experience.  There  is  not  much  time  in  the  four  years 
of  an  engineering  course  that  can  economically  be  given 
to  the  details  of  practice,  but  it  is  essential  that  the 
student  should  understand  the  fundamental  principles 
of  the  subjects.  In  this  volume  some  of  the  general 
principles  of  track  and  of  the  part  of  railroad  construction 
with  which  the  young  engineer  may  come  in  contact 
early  in  his  experience  are  presented. 

The  author  wishes  to  thank  Prof.  L.  D.  Conkling  for 
his  valuable  assistance  in  preparing  this  book. 


305612 


TABLE  OF  CONTENTS. 


CHAPTER  PAGE 

I.  HISTORY  OF  RAILROADS  IN  THE  UNITED  STATES 1 

Art.   I.  Development  of  Railroads 1 

II.  PERMANENT  WAY 7 

Art.       II.  Ballast 7 

"         III.  Cross-Ties  and  Tie  Plates 22 

IV.  Railroad  Rails 53 

V.  Rail  Joints 68 

VI.  Railroad  Spikes 83 

III.  TURNOUTS 92 

Art.     VII.  Switches .92 

"      VIII.  Frogs 100 

IX.  Crossovers.     Switch  Attachments 108 

IV.  SIDETRACKS,  YARDS,  TERMINALS,  SIGNALS 123 

Art.        X.  Sidetracks  and  Yards 123 

XI.  Water  Supply  for  Locomotives 132 

XII.  Signals 135 

V.  MAINTENANCE  OF  WAY 144 

Art.  XIII.  Organization     of     Maintenance     of     Way 

Forces 144 

"      XIV.  Section  Tools  and  Outfit 149 

XV.  Track  Signs 175 

"      XVI.  The  Work  Train 182 

"    XVII.  Miscellaneous 193 

"  XVIII.  Track  Inspection 201 

VI.  RAILROAD  CONSTRUCTION 206 

Art.  XIX.  The  Engineer  Corps ' 206 

XX.  Cuts  and  Fills 215 

VII.  TRESTLES 240 

Art.  XXI.  Framed  Trestles 240 

"    XXII.  Pile  Trestle  Bents 252 

"  XXIII.  Trestle  Superstructure 254 

VIII.  CULVERTS 267 

Art.  XXIV.  Drainage 267 

"       XXV.  Culverts 273 

IX.  THE  SUBGRADE 289 

Art.      XXVI.  Roadbed  in  Fills 289 

"       XXVII.  Roadbed  in  Cuts 293 

"     XXVIII.  Ditches 297 

"        XXIX.  Fences 299 

XXX.  Cattle  Guards  and  Passes.     Road  Cross- 
ings   307 

INDEX  ....  .  .315 


OF   THE 

UNIVERSITY 


CHAPTER  I. 

HISTORY  OF  RAILROADS  IN  THE 
UNITED  STATES. 


ARTICLE  I. 
DEVELOPMENT  OF  RAILROADS. 

1.  Definition  of  Term  Railroad.— The  terms  rail- 
road and  railway  are   synonymous  and  are  about  the 
same  age.     At  present  the  term  railroad  is  used  in 
the  United  States  and  railway  in  England;    but  there 
is  a  growing  tendency  in  the  United  States  to  use  the 
term  railway  in  connection  with  trolley  lines.     Formerly 
the  term  railroad,   or  railway,   included  the  roadbed, 
ballast,  ties,  rails,  rail- joints,  spikes,  switches  and  switch 
mechanism,  collectively  called  permanent  way,  and  the 
signals ;  but  in  common  and  accepted  usage  the  meaning 
of  the  term  has  been  extended  to  include  not  only  the 
permanent  way  and  signals,  but  everything  necessary 
to  its  operation,  such  as  the  rolling  stock  and  buildings, 
including  stations,  roundhouses,  shops,  etc.,  and  also 
all  other  property  of  the  operating  company,  such  as 
stocks,  bonds,  and  other  securities. 

2.  Development  of  Railroads. — The  railroad  of  today 
has  developed  from  the  tramway.    The  first  tramways 

1  1 


I  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

consisted  of  trams  of  wood  or  flat  stones  laid  flush  with 
the  surface  of  the  road;  these  developed  to  stone  and 
wooden  stringers  covered  with  strap-iron,  and  finally 
to  the  permanent  way  now  in  use.  The  date  of  the  first 
tramway  is  not  known;  they  were  designed  so  that 
horses  could  pull  heavier  loads  with  less  effort,  the  wheels 
being  plain,  or  without  flanges.  In  1789,  edge  rails 
were  introduced,  the  wheel  running  on  the  upper  edge  and 
having  flanges.  The  motive  power  on  the  first  tram- 
ways was  horses;*  but  as  the  rail  was  developed  and 
became  stronger,  heavier  cars  could  be  used  and  some- 
thing stronger  and  faster  than  horses  was  needed.  Some 
of  the  tramways  were  operated,  their  length  being  short, 
by  means  of  a  stationary  engine  winding  up  a  rope  on 
a  drum,  the  cars  running  back  by  gravity. 

3.  History  of  the  Locomotive  Engine. — James  Watt, 
1736-1819,  for  many  years  worked  on  the  problem  of 
perfecting  an  apparatus  which  would  draw  wagons 
on  the  common  highway,  and  patented  a  locomotive 
carriage  in  1784.  Watt  was  an  advocate  of  the  low- 
pressure  steam-engine,  which  proved  unsuitable  for  the 
purpose.  In  1802,  an  Englishman,  Trevithick,  built 
a  high-pressure  locomotive.  It  worked,  but  the  ve- 
locity was  low  and  the  adhesion  of  the  wheels  to  the  rails 
was  poor,  so  a  system  of  rack  rails  was  used.  George 
Stephenson,  1781-1848,  made  a  successful  trial  of  a 
traveling  engine  worked  by  steam,  over  a  tram  road  be- 
tween the  colliery  and  the  port,  at  Killingworth,  England, 
in  1814.  The  exhaust  of  this  engine  opened  directly 
into  the  air,  and  people  along  the  line  objected  to  the 
*  See  Railroad  Gazette,  Sept.  22,  1905. 


HISTORY   OF   RAILROADS   IN   THE   UNITED   STATES.       3 

clouds  of  condensed  steam,  so  Stephenson  tried  the  ex- 
periment of  turning  the  exhaust  into  the  stack;  thus 
by  accident  he  discovered  that  he  could  double  the  orig- 
inal speed  of  three  miles  per  hour.  Stephenson  made 
many  other  improvements,  such  as  increasing  the  weight 
over  the  driving  wheels  in  order  to  obtain  better  adhesion, 
and  demonstrated  that  the  locomotive  engine  was  to  be 
the  motive  power  of  the  future. 

4.  The   First   Railroad. — Stephenson   then   became 
engineer  of  the  Stockton  and  Darlington  Railroad,  which 
was  opened  on  Sept.  27,  1825,  and  was  the  first  railroad 
to  carry  both  passengers  and  goods  by  steam  power. 
It  was  originally  intended  that  the  wagons  should  be 
pulled  by  horses.     The  locomotive  used  on  this  road 
could  run  seven  miles  per  hour  on  the  level  places.     As 
is  usually  the  case  with  new  ideas,  public  opinion  was 
greatly  against  locomotives  and  predicted  that  a  speed 
of  fifteen  miles  per  hour  could  never  be  obtained  in  this 
way.     Stephenson,  however,  was  of  a  different  opinion. 
He  continued  his  experiments  and  influenced  others  to 
begin  similar  work.     In  1829,  the  Stockton  and  Darling- 
ton Railroad  offered  a  premium  of  $2500.00  for  a  loco- 
motive that  would  not  cost  more  than  $2700.00,  that 
would  draw  three  times  its  own  weight,  and  reach  a 
speed  of  ten  miles  per  hour.     A  competition  was  held  in 
October,  1829,  and  five  locomotives  were  entered.     The 
Rocket,  manufactured  by  Stephenson,  weighed  seven 
and  one-half  tons,  and  pulled  forty-four  tons  at  the 
rate  of  fourteen  miles  per  hour.     Without  the  load,  the 
Rocket  made  thirty-five  miles  per  hour. 

5.  Railroads  in  the  United  States.— The  first  rail- 


4  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

road  built  in  the  United  States  was  at  Quincy,  Mass., 
in  1825.  It  was  five  miles  long  and  ran  between  a  stone 
quarry  and  an  ocean  pier.  The  rails  were  partly  of 
wooden  longitudinal  stringers  covered  with  strap-iron, 
and  partly  of  stringers  resting  on  cross-ties. 

The  second  railroad  in  the  United  States  was  built  in 
1827,  at  Mauch  Chunk,  Pa.,  and  ran  between  Mauch 
Chunk  and  Summit  Hill,  a  distance  of  nine  miles.  Coal 
cars  were  run  over  it  by  gravity  and  were  pulled  back 
empty  by  horses. 

6.  First  Locomotive  in  the  United  States. — In  1828, 
the  Delaware  and  Hudson  Railroad  Company  sent  their 
engineer,  Horatio  Allen,  1802-1889,  to  England  to  in- 
spect the  locomotives  of  the  Stockton  and  Darlington 
Railroad.     Allen  ordered  a  locomotive  from  a  firm  in 
Stourbridge,    England.     This    locomotive    had    a    lion 
painted  on  the  front  and  was  known  as  the  "  Stourbridge 
Lion."     In  1829,  this  locomotive  arrived  in  New  York 
and  was  sent  to  Honesdale,  Pa.,  and  on  August  9,  1829, 
it  was  put  on  the  track  and,  with  Horatio  Allen  as 
engineer,  it  was  run  six  miles  over  the  Delaware  and 
Hudson  Railroad.     There  were  several  timber  trestles 
on  the  road,  and  as  they  were  thought  to  be  too  weak  to 
support  the  locomotive,  the  locomotive  was  abandoned 
temporarily.     This  was  the  first  trip  made  by  a  locomo- 
tive in  the  United  States.     Allen  lived  for  sixty  years 
after  this  incident,  and  at  the  time  of  his  death,  Dec.  31, 
1889,  there  were  over  150,000  miles  of  steam  roads  in 
this  country. 

7.  Locomotives  in  the  United  States. — The  next 
experiment  at  locomotive  running  was  made  on  the 


HISTORY   OF   RAILROADS   IN   THE   UNITED    STATES.       5 

Baltimore  and  Ohio  Railroad  in  1830,  by  Peter  Cooper, 
who  took  a  stationary  engine,  mounted  it  on  a  flat  car, 
connected  it  with  the  wheels  by  means  of  cranks,  and  by 
putting  a  bellows  on  the  firebox,  succeeded  in  making  a 
trip  at  fifteen  miles  per  hour.  By  this  time  the  great 
success  of  the  Rocket  had  become  known  and  a  foundry 
at  West  Point,  N.  Y.,  was  engaged  in  building  loco- 
motives. One  was  built  for  a  railroad  in  South  Caro- 
lina, and  in  1832  another  was  built  and  put  on  the  Mo- 
hawk and  Hudson  Railroad.  This  road  claims  to  have 
run  the  first  passenger  train  in  the  United  States,  in 
1833. 

8.  Miles  of  Railroad  in  the  United  States.— As 
stated  in  If  5,  the  first  railroad  in  the  United  States  was 
built  in  1825,  and  the  second  in  1827.  By  1830,  122 
miles  of  railroad  had  been  completed  and  154  miles  were 
in  course  of  construction.  The  railroads  forming  this 
mileage  were  the  Delaware  and  Hudson,  Baltimore  and 
Ohio,  Baltimore  and  Susquchanna,  Camden  and  Arnboy, 
Mohawk  and  Hudson,  and  the  South  Carolina  Railroad, 
which  was  the  first  railroad  to  have  100  miles  of  con- 
tinuous track  in  operation.  All  of  these  railroads  were 
commenced  before  the  trial  of  the  Rocket,  with  the  in- 
tention of  using  horses  for  motive  force.  They  were  not 
built  with  the  idea  of  growing  into  a  system  of  railroads, 
with  the  possible  exception  of  the  Baltimore  and  Ohio 
Railroad,  but  were  built  where  traffic  demanded  easier 
transportation  to  central  points,  being  for  way-traffic 
solely.  After  the  success  of  the  Rocket  railroads  began 
to  develop  in  an  increasing  ratio  until  they  formed  the 
vast  systems  which  now  join  the  different  parts  of  the 


G 


RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


United  States.     The  following  table  shows  the  growth 
of  railroads  in  the  United  States: 


TABLE  I. 


SINGLE 

SECOND 

THIRD 

FOURTH 

YARDS  AND 

TOTAL 

YEAR. 

TRACK. 

TRACK. 

TRACK. 

TRACK. 

SIDINGS. 

TRACK. 

MILES. 

MILES. 

MILES. 

MILES. 

MILES. 

MILES. 

1830 

122 

1840 

2,816 

1850 

9,015 

.  . 

1860 

30,600 

.  . 

1870 

52,850 

1880 

93,530 

1890 

161,400 

.  . 

.  . 

.  . 

.  . 

1900 

193,346 

12,151 

1,094 

829 

52,153 

259,573 

1906 

224,363 

17,936 

1,766 

1,280 

73,761 

319,106 

CHAPTER  II. 
PERMANENT  WAY. 


ARTICLE  II. 
BALLAST. 

9.  Function  of  Ballast. — The  main  function  of 
ballast  is  to  keep  the  track  in  true  line  and  surface.  The 
weight  of  the  engine  and  train  comes  on  the  rails,  is 
carried  to  the  ties  by  the  rails,  and  the  pressure  on  the 
ties  should  be  uniformly  distributed  over  the  top  of  the 
subgrade  by  the  ballast,  thus  causing  the  pressure  per 
unit  of  area  on  the  subgrade  to  be  so  small  that  the 
track  will  be  firmly  supported.  Ideal  ballast  should 
have  the  following  properties: 

1.  Retain  no  water. 

2.  Give  a  firm  support  to  the  tie. 

3.  Distribute  the  pressure  over  the  subgrade. 

4.  Tamp  easily. 

5.  Not  form  dust. 

6.  Not  allow  weeds  to  grow. 

7.  Low  cost. 

Ballast  should  allow  the  water  that  falls  upon  it  to 
drain  away  quickly,  thus  preventing  the  premature 

7 


8  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

decay  of  the  ties  and  the  softening  of  the  subgrade.  It 
should  give  a  firm  support  to  the  tie  and  prevent  the  tie 
from  moving  laterally.  If  ballast  drains  readily,  it  can 
be  worked  during  the  wet  season  and  in  winter,  and 
prevents  the  heaving  of  the  track  by  frost  in  the  spring 
of  the  year.  Ballast  should  not  allow  the  growth  of 
weeds  or  form  dust  in  dry  weather:  Weeds  aid  in  re- 
taining moisture  and  in  causing  the  ties  to  decay  quicker, 
and  a  dusty  track  is  not  only  very  disagreeable  to  pas- 
sengers, but  is  injurious  to  the  rolling  stock,  particularly 
the  journals. 

10.  Materials  Used  for  Ballast. — The  materials  most 
generally  used  for  ballast  are  as  follows : 

1.  Broken  stone. 

2.  Slag. 

3.  Gravel. 

4.  Cinders. 

5.  Sand. 

6.  Special  materials. 

7.  Subsoil. 

They  conform  to  the  above  desired  qualities  in  the 
order  named,  broken  stone  being  the  best. 

11.  Broken  Stone  Ballast. — Broken  stone  makes  the 
best  ballast,  and  is  commonly  called  "  stone  ballast," 
or  "  rock  ballast."     It  distributes  the  pressure  over  the 
subgrade  better  than  any  other  form  of  ballast,  the 
pieces  of  stone  fitting  together  and  acting  almost  like 
masonry.     The  area  of  support  increases  with  the  depth 
of  the  ballast,  and  at  a  less  depth  than  any  other  ballast 
the  pressure  from  the  ties  is  distributed  uniformly  over 
the  subgrade.     It  forms  an  excellent  bed  for  the  tie, 


PERMANENT  WAY. 

prevents  lateral  movement  of  the  tie,  and  water  drains 
out  readily,  thus  keeping  the  subgrade  dry,  and  has  a 
minimum  tendency  to  cause  the  tie  to  decay.  Stone 
ballast  is  not  as  easy  to  work  as  some  other  kinds  of 
ballast,  but  it  holds  better  than  any  other  kind  and  can 
be  more  readily  worked  in  wet  or  freezing  weather,  and 
despite  its  higher  first  cost  and  the  difficulty  of  handling 
it,  stone  ballast  is  the  most  economical  ballast  for  heavy 
traffic.  When  carefully  dressed,  it  presents  the  neatest 
appearance  and  forms  the  least  dust,  which  makes  it 
particularly  desirable  for  railroads  that  have  a  large 
passenger  traffic. 

12.  Size  of  Stone  for  Ballast. — Maintenance  of 
way  engineers  differ  as  to  the  size  to  which  the  stone  shall 
be  broken  for  ballast.  A  few  advocate  stone  that  will 
pass  through  a  3J-inch  ring,  believing  that  a  smaller 
size  will  retain  too  large  a  proportion  of  fine  material  and 
become  too  hard  and  compact.  Others  specify  stone 
that  will  pass  through  a  1-inch  ring,  because  it  will  tamp 
even,  give  a  smooth  surface  and  work  easily.  These 
sizes  always  allude  to  the  largest  size  allowed,  it  being 
understood  that  smaller  sizes  go  with  them.  It  is  some- 
times specified  that  all  the  stone  shall  pass  through  a 
larger  ring  (from  1  inch  to  3i  inches)  and  none  through  a 
smaller  ring  (J  to  1  inch).  All  engineers  agree  that  no 
loam  or  dirt  should  be  allowed,  as  it  would  prevent  proper 
drainage,  tend  to  decay  the  ties,  cause  dust  to  form,  and 
grass  and  weeds  to  grow;  but  many  engineers  prefer  a 
small  proportion  of  stone  dust  to  be  mixed  with  the 
ballast  and  to  be  used  on  the  surface  as  much  as  possible. 
When  no  fine  stone  is  allowed,  the  ballast  must  be  handled 


10  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

with  ballast-forks,  which  allows  the  finer  material  to 
sift  out  in  handling. 

13.  Laying  and  Depth  of  Stone  Ballast. — When  the 
ballast  varies  in  size,  the  larger  stones  as  much  as  pos- 
sible should  be  placed  in  the  bottom,  as  shown  at  B, 
Fig.  1,  which  will  give  the  best  drainage  possible.  This 
is  very  difficult  in  most  cases,  however,  on  account  of 
the  ballast  being  dumped  alongside  the  track  from  cars 
after  the  track  has  been  spiked  together,  and  the  method 
of  putting  the  ballast  under  the  track  allows  very  little 
chance  of  sorting  it  into  different  sizes,  and  it  will  be 
poor  economy  to  go  to  much  expense  to  arrange  the 


FIG.  1. 

bottom  stones,  particularly  when  the  subgrade  has.  been 
properly  made,  compacted,  and  shaped. 

Stone  ballast  is  the  most  expensive  ballast  in  first 
cost,  and  it  is  poor  economy  to  make  it  too  shallow — a 
depth  of  twelve  inches  below  the  bottom  of  the  tie  is  the 
minimum  that  should  be  used,  and  for  railroads  with 
heavy  traffic  a  depth  of  eighteen  inches  below  the  bottom 
of  the  tie  is  the  minimum  that  should  be  used. 

14.  Cross-section  of  Stone  Ballast. — The  standard 
plans  for  the  cross-section  of  the  ballast  vary  on  differ- 
ent railroads,  and  sometimes  on  the  same  railroad  there 
will  be  different  cross-sections  for  different  classes  of 
track,  there  being  a  distinction  made  between  main  line 


PERMANENT   WAY.  11 

and  branches.  Some  specify  a  rounded  shoulder  for  the 
top  of  the  side  slope  of  the  ballast  at  six  inches  from  the 
end  of  the  tie,  as  at  A,  Fig.  1.  The  Pennsylvania  R.  R. 
slopes  the  ballast  directly  from  the  outer  top  corner  of 
the  tie.  The  main  points  specified  are  as  follows: 
(1)  The  depth  of  ballast  between  the  bottom  of  the  tie 
and  the  top  of  subgrade  at  the  center  of  the  track;  (2) 
trie  distance  of  the  toe  of  slope  B  out  from  the  center 
line;  (3)  the  point  A  at  which  the  slope  begins;  and 
(4)  the  shape  of  the  slope. 

The  position  of  the  point  A  is  of  doubtful  importance. 
An  important  function  of  the  ballast  is  to  keep  the  track 
in  alinement.  This  is  obtained  mainly  through  the  hold 
that  the  ballast  takes  upon  the  bottom  and  sides  of  the 
tie.  There  is  undoubtedly  some  resistance  to  lateral 
movement  obtained  from  ballast  placed  at  the  end  of  the 
tie,  but  this  presumably  does  not  amount  to  much,  as  a 
number  of  standard  plans  show  the  ballast  sloping 
directly  from  the  end  of  the  tie. 

15.  Dressing  the  Slopes  of  Ballast. — After  the  track 
has  been  surfaced,  placed  in  full  service,  and  resurfaced 
after  a  sufficient  amount  of  use  to  insure  that  it  will  re- 
main in  surface  and  alinement  for  a  reasonable  length  of 
time,  the  toe  of  slope  of  the  ballast  should 
be  dressed  to  true  parallel  lines  on  each  side 
of  the  track.     This  is  best  done  by  stretch- 
ing a  string  and  laying  the  outer  and  larger 
stones  by  hand.  If  these  stones  are  laid  with         FIG.  2. 
a  bottom  width  of  about  six  inches  and  to 
the  true  slope  as  shown  in  Fig.  2,  it  will  be  possible  to  dress 
the  balance  of  the  slope  of  the  ballast  to  a  true  surface 


12  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

with  the  ordinary  tools  of  the  track  gang.  This  adds 
greatly  to  the  neatness  of  the  roadbed.  When  there  is 
more  ballast  than  is  required  for  the  standard  cross- 
section,  it  is  customary  to  round  the  outer  slope  or  to 
extend  the  toe  of  slope  B  sufficiently  to  use  all  the 
ballast  and  maintain  an  uniform  shape. 

16.  Rock  for  Ballast. — Any  rock  that  will  not  dis- 
integrate under  the  action  of  the  weather  and  will  not 
break  up  under  wear  and  tamping  will  do  for  ballast; 
viz.,  trap  rock,  granite,  hard  limestone,  etc.     The  ac- 
cessibility of  the  supply  to  the  point  of  demand  will 
often  influence  the  choice  of  rock  for  ballast.     A  large 
railroad  system  may  either  operate  its  own  plants  at 
convenient  points,  or  contract  with  private  parties  at 
these  points:  The  amount  required  will  govern  this  to  a 
great  extent.     In  case  the  railroad  company  contracts 
for  its  ballast,  it  is  usually  delivered  on  board  the  cars 
(f.  o.  b.)  at  the  quarry,  and  an  inspector  will  probably 
be  placed  at  the  quarry  to  watch  the  quality  of  the  stone 
crushed,  as  very  few  quarries  have  a  uniform  quality  of 
rock  throughout,  particularly  limestone  near  the  surface 
of  the  ground. 

17.  Relative  Value  of  Stone  Ballast. — Stone  ballast 
retains  less  water,  gives  a  firmer  support  to  the  tie, 
holding  it  in  surface  longer,  distributes  the  pressure  over 
the  subgrade,  forms  less  dust  than  any  other  form  of 
ballast.     On  the  other  hand,  it  cuts  the  tie,  thereby  aid- 
ing in  its  decay ;  it  is  hard  to  tamp,  making  it  expensive 
to  make  tie  renewals,  and  has  a  greater  first  cost;   but 
everything  considered,  it  is  the  best  form  of  ballast  now 
in  use. 


PERMANENT  WAY.  13 

1 8.  Slag  Ballast. — Slag  of  the  right  composition  when 
broken  to  the  proper  size  makes  a  ballast  which  com- 
pares very  favorably  with  rock  ballast,  but  its  use  is  re- 
stricted  to   certain   localities   convenient   to   furnaces. 
Slag  varies  greatly  in  its  suitability  for  ballast,  owing  both 
to  its  composition  and  the  manner  of  handling  it  while  in 
a  melted  condition.     Slag  should  contain  no  free  lime 
and  should  be  hard  and  solid,  with  a  vitrified  or  glassy  ap- 
pearance. A  porous  slag  will  disintegrate  under  the  action 
of  the  elements  and  break  up  when  tamped,  and  after  a 
time  the  particles  will  cement  together,  forming  a  mass 
that  is  very  difficult  to  handle  when  resurfacing  the  road. 
If  the  slag  in  its  molten  condition  is  dumped  in  a  thick 
mass,  the  surface  will  be  solid  and  vitrified,  but  the  in- 
terior will  be  quite  porous  and  unfit  for  ballast.     If  the 
slag  is  dumped  so  that  it  spreads  into  a  thin  sheet  before 
cooling,  it  will  be  vitrified  and  solid  throughout  and  can 
then  be  broken  up  into  good  ballast.     This  is  usually  at- 
tained by  dumping  it  at  the  top  of  a  steep  slope  over 
which  it  spreads. 

Furnaces  are  usually  glad  to  get  rid  of  slag,'  therefore 
if  the  railroad  finds  a  conveniently  situated  furnace 
making  a  slag  containing  no  free  lime  and  dumped  so  as 
not  to  be  porous,  the  first  cost  of  the  ballast  is  in  break- 
ing it  to  the  proper  size  and  loading  it  on  cars. 

19.  Relative  Value  of  Slag  Ballast:— Slag  ballast  is 
handled  with  forks  and  placed  under  the  track  in  exactly 
the  same  manner  as  broken  stone.     As  stated  in  If  18, 
the  properties  of  good  slag  ballast  correspond  very  closely 
to  those  of  broken  stone  ballast,  excepting  that  it  has  a 
greater  tendency  to  cut  and  injure  the  tie.     Some  track- 


14  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

men  claim  that  slag  ballast  requires  more  tamping  than 
broken  stone,  and  also  a  greater  tendency  to  make  the 
ties  decay,  and  that  it  corrodes  the  rails.  This  can 
hardly  be  appreciable  if  care  is  taken  to  see  that  the  slag 
contains  no  free  lime  or  chemicals  which  cause  the  slag 
to  disintegrate.  Slag  ballast  should  be  laid  with  a  thick- 
ness of  twelve  to  eighteen  inches  below  the  bottom  of  the 
tie,  the  same  as  stone  ballast. 

In  view  of  the  great  care  required  and  difficulty  ex- 
perienced in  obtaining  slag  of  the  right  kind  for  ballast, 
and  its  limited  use  as  ballast,  it  in  reality  ranks  third  in 
importance  and  comes  after  gravel  ballast. 

20.  Gravel  Ballast. — The  third  variety  of  ballast  in 
f  10  is  gravel  ballast,  but  the  relative  rank  of  gravel 
ballast  depends  upon  the  quality  of  the  gravel.  In 
localities  where  there  is  no  stone  for  ballast  and  there  is  a 
plentiful  supply  of  gravel,  when  the  gravel  is  well  washed 
and  assorted,  graVel  ballast  easily  ranks  first.  On  the 
other  hand,  when  the  gravel  is  shoveled  up  and  used  with- 
out proper  cleaning  and  assorting,  it  makes  a  poor  ballast, 
but  little  better  than  a  sand  ballast,  or  fifth  in  rank. 

Gravel  occurs  in  two  forms  of  deposit;  viz.,  in  banks 
and  in  the  beds  of  streams.  Bank-gravel  consists  of 
more  or  less  rounded  stones  of  varying  sizes,  mixed  usu- 
ally with  sand  or  clay  or  both  sand  and  clay  found  in 
deposits  in  places  which  in  former  ages  was  the  bed  of 
a  stream.  Stream-gravel  is  found  in  the  beds  of  exist- 
ing streams,  and  the  pebbles  forming  the  gravel  are  more 
rounded  than  those  in  bank-gravel  and  do  not  pack  to- 
gether when  tamped  as  well  as  the  sharper,  more  ang- 
ular, bank-gravel. 


PERMANENT  WAY.  15 

In  many  cases  a  deposit  of  bank-gravel  is  found  in 
which  the  pebbles  are  the  proper  size  for  ballast  and  the 
proportion  of  sand  and  clay  or  loam  is  so  small  that  it 
makes  a  fair  ballast  without  any  manipulation  other 
than  stripping  off  the  surface  soil,  the  gravel  being  loaded 
on  cars  by  steam  shovels  or  otherwise,  and  distributed 
and  used  as  ballast.  It  is  deposits  such  as  just  described 
that  cause  gravel  ballast  to  rank  low  as  a  ballast.  Even 
the  best  of  such  deposits  will  contain  enough  sand,  clay, 
or  fine  material  to  affect  the  quality  of  the  ballast,  and 
depending  upon  the  proportion  of  such  fine  material  the 
ballast  will  retain  water,  give  a  poor  support  to  the  tie, 
cause  the  tie  to  decay  more  readily,  will  not  distribute 
the  pressure  over  the  subgrade  so  readily,  and  will  form 
dust  and  cause  weeds  and  grass  to  grow;  but  it  will  tamp 
easily  and  is  cheap. 

21.  Washed  Gravel. — In  order  to  make  the  best 
ballast  possible  out  of  gravel,  some  railroad  companies 
have  established  washing  plants  at  their  gravel  beds. 
The  Lake  Shore  and  Michigan  Southern  R.  R.  has  two 
plants  in  operation  for  washing  gravel  for  ballast,*  being 
the  pioneer  in  this  work.  The  gravel  is  loaded  on  the 
cars  by  a  steam  shovel;  the  loaded  cars  are  run  over  a 
hopper  into  which  the  raw  gravel  is  dumped ;  the  gravel 
is  conveyed  from  the  hopper  to  the  top  of  the  washer  by 
a  Link-Belt  conveyor;  the  raw  gravel  and  water  are 
discharged  together  on  a  flume  six  feet  wide  and  eight 
feet  long,  the  water  being  delivered  through  an  eight-inch 
pipe  to  which  is  attached  a  special  nozle  which  spreads 
the  stream;  the  gravel  and  water  are  then  discharged 
*  Railroad  Gazette,  Sept.  14,  1906. 


16  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

upon  a  bar  screen  with  two-inch  spaces,  thus  removing 
all  pebbles  larger  than  two-inch,  these  large  pebbles 
being  discharged  into  a  crusher.  The  material  then 
passes  successively  over  f-inch,  J-inch,  and  J-inch  mesh 
wire  screens.  Each  size  of  gravel  is  run  into  a  separate 
hopper,  -and  the  material  that  passes  the  last  screen  is 
run  into  the  settler  from  which  building  sand  is  obtained, 
the  sand  being  a  by-product  which  reduces  the  cost  of 
the  ballast.  Cars  are  run  under  the  hoppers  of  the  bins 
and  any  desired  mixture  of  the  different  sizes  of  pebbles 
can  be  made. 

The  maximum  daily  capacity  of  the  newer  of  these 
plants  is  1500  cu.  yds.,  and  the  washing  costs  22.7  cents 
per  cubic  yard,  which,  added  to  the  cost  of  6.5  cents  per 
cu.  yd.  for  stripping  the  gravel  pit,  makes  the  total  cost 
of  the  washed  gravel  on  the  car  a  little  over  29  cents  per 
cu.  yd.,  which  is  about  one-half  the  cost  of  crushed  stone 
for  ballast. 

Washed  gravel  ballast  will  drain  readily,  give  a  good 
support  to  the  tie,  distribute  the  pressure  over  the  road- 
bed fairly  well,  will  tamp  easily,  will  not  form  dust  or 
allow  weeds  or  grass  to  grow,  and  costs  much  less  than 
rock  ballast  in  some  sections  of  the  country.  It  is  claimed 
by  some  engineers  that  gravel  ballast  gives  a  more  elastic 
and  better  riding  track  than  broken  stone  ballast. 

22.  Cinder  Ballast. — Cinders  make  a  much  better 
ballast  than  is  generally  supposed,  but  as  they  can  only 
be  obtained  locally  in  relatively  small  quantities,  they 
are  mostly  used  for  railroad  yards  and  side  tracks. 
Cinders  from  roundhouse  ash-pits  do  not  contain  a  very 
large  proportion  of  ash  and  undesirable  materials  and  are 


PERMANENT   WAY.  17 

composed  principally  of  clinkers,  slag,  burned  rock,  etc. 
It  is  necessary  to  dispose  of  this  material,  and  it  must  be 
loaded  into  cars,  hauled  away  and  dumped,  so  the  only 
expense  in  connection  with  using  it  for  ballast  is  that  of 
hauling  it  to  the  place  where  it  is  to  be  used  and  distribut- 
ing it  along  the  track.  The  constant  supply  that  comes 
from  this  source  makes  it  very  convenient  for  ballast 
renewals,  but  it  is  difficult  to  obtain  enough  cinders  to  use 
exclusively  over  a  considerable  stretch  of  road.  Care 
must  be  taken  to  use  cinder  comparatively  free  from 
ashes.  At  best,  cinder  becomes  pulverized  during  the 
process  of  tamping  and  the  action  of  traffic,  and  is  also 
liable  to  disintegrate  under  the  action  of  the  elements 
and  form  a  mass  that  will  retain  moisture  in  wet  weather 
and  form  a  bad  dust  in  dry  weather. 

23.  Sand  Ballast.  —The  use  of  sand  for  ballast  should 
be  only  temporary.  It  is  far  inferior  to  any  of  the  bal- 
lasts mentioned  above,  and  is  superior  to  "mud"  ballast 
only.  Where  the  railroad  is  so  situated  that  there  is  no 
better  material  for  ballast  along  the  line,  and  all  material 
used  must  come  in  over  the  line  from  one  end,  then  it 
will  probably  be  necessary  to  put  the  track  in  temporary 
surface  by  using  sand.  In  this  case  only  enough  to  bed 
the  ties  and  put  the  track  in  surface  should  be  used,  so 
that  when  the  proper  ballast  is  obtained,  the  sand  may 
be  considered  as  the  top  of  the  subgrade.  The  only  ad- 
vantage of  sand  ballast  is  that  it  is  better  than  dirt 
ballast.  It  allows  the  water  to  drain  out  to  a  moderate 
degree  and  exerts  a  fair  tendency  to  keep  the  track  in 
surface  and  alinement.  It  retains  sufficient  moisture  to 
hasten  the  decay  of  the  tie,  and  it  is  quite  difficult  to 

2 


18  RAILROAD   TRACK   AND    CONSTRUCTION. 

keep  it  free  from  weeds  and  dust.  The  amount  of  dust 
formed  by  a  fast  train  over  a  sand-ballasted  roadbed  is 
enormous.  The  sand  should  be  clean,  coarse,  and  sharp. 

24.  Miscellaneous  Ballast. — The  cost  of  transporta- 
tion in  many  cases  becomes  the  governing  feature  in  ob- 
taining suitable  ballast  at  an  economical  cost,  and  it  is 
more  economical  to  use  a  poor  local  material  than  to 
transport  a  better  material  for  ballast  a  long  distance. 
This  has  led  to  the  use  of  a  number  of  materials  for 
ballast.  In  the  anthracite  coal  regions  of  eastern  Penn- 
sylvania and  in  some  other  mining  regions,  culm,  or  coal- 
dust  from  the  breakers,  has  been  used  for  ballast  on 
branch  roads  carrying  principally  freight  traffic.  It  is  a 
mobile  substance,  having  a  tendency  to  spread  at  the 
sides  of  the  track.  It  is  not  softened  by  water,  does  riot 
heave  by  freezing,  and  does  not  grow  vegetation. 
It  is  easily  worked  but  will  not  stand  bar  tamping,  and 
does  not  make  a  firm  support  for  the  tie.* 

Oyster  shells  are  used  for  ballast  in  some  regions  near 
the  Chesapeake  Bay.  The  material  is  too  light  for  good 
results  and  encourages  the  growth  of  weeds  and  grass,  but 
does  not  form  dust,  and  can  be  used  only  under  very 
light  traffic. 

Decomposed  rock,  granite,  or  shale  is  used  extensively 
for  ballast  in  some  parts  of  the  West  and  South.  De- 
composed granite  makes  a  better  ballast  than  sand,  as  it 
does  not  form  dust  or  cause  weeds  and  grass  to  grow,  but 
decomposed  shale  makes  a  poorer  ballast  than  clean 
sharp  sand. 

In  some  parts  of  Arizona  volcanic  cinder  is  used  for 
*  Notes  on  Track,  Camp. 


PERMANENT  WAY.  19 

ballast.  It  is  excavated  from  pits  with  steam  shovels 
and  closely  resembles  burnt  clay  ballast.  In  ballasting 
track  it  is  first  tamped  with  shovels,  and  surfaced  up 
later  with  tamping  bars. 

In  regions  where  neither  stone,  slag,  gravel,  cinder, 
sand,  nor  any  of  the  above-mentioned  materials  for 
ballast  can  be  obtained  without  an  excessive  haul,  and 
the  subsoil  is  clay  or  gumbo,  a  great  deal  of  burnt  clay 
ballast  has  been  used.  The  clay  or  gumbo  is  placed  in 
alternate  layers  with  fuel  and  burned,  thus  giving  a 
material  which  resembles  a  poor  grade  of  brick.  It  is 
drier,  although  it  has  a  considerable  affinity  for  water, 
than  the  original  material,  and  is  quite  expensive  com- 
pared to  the  results  obtained,  but  under  the  circum- 
stances gives  a  comparatively  good  roadbed.  It  is  used 
extensively  in  the  Mississippi  Valley,  and  some  road- 
masters  who  have  become  familiar  with  it  compare  it 
favorably  with  gravel  and  even  stone  ballast. 

25.  Dirt  Ballast. — Dirt  ballast,  commonly  called 
mud  ballast,  is,  as  the  name  implies,  simply  the  best  dirt 
for  the  purpose  that  can  be  obtained  from  the  excava- 
tions made  in  constructing  the  subgrade.  Dirt  is  used 
for  ballast  only  when  no  other  material  can  be  obtained, 
and  it  is  not  of  such  poor  quality  that  it  must  be  first 
burned.  After  the  subgrade  is  finished  and  the  track 
laid,  enough  extra  dirt  is  thrown  under  the  ties  to  surface 
up  the  track,  care  being  taken  to  exclude  rubbish,  the 
top  soil,  and  all  undesirable  material  as  far  as  possible. 

Dirt  ballast  gives  the  poorest  drainage,  the  worst 
support  to  the  ties,  is  the  most  liable  to  rot  the  ties,  and 
it  is  almost  impossible  to  keep  weeds  and  grass  out  of  the 


20  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

track.  It  is  dusty  in  dry  weather  and  causes  the  ties  to 
pump  mud  in  wet  weather.  No  surfacing  can  be  done 
between  fall  and  spring,  and  the  track  is  heaved  by  the 
frost.  One  of  the  worst  features  in  connection  with 
even  the  temporary  use  of  dirt  ballast  is  that  the  ballast 
becomes  practically  a  part  of  the  subgrade,  which  makes 
a  very  undesirable  foundation  on  account  of  the  uneven 
surface  for  a  better  grade  of  ballast. 

26.  Cross-section  of  Ballast. — The  shape  of  the  cross- 
section  of  all  single  track  ballast,  excepting  rock  and  slag 
ballast,  is  shown  in  Fig.  3.  The  dimensions  and  slopes 
vary  with  the  standards  of  the  particular  railroad  com- 
pany, but  an  outer  slope  of  1  on  1J  is  the  steepest  slope 

that  will  stand.  The  depth 
^--- —  f        ^Jv  °f  the  ballast  E  F  will  de- 

-j£— F Ltol/  ^ —     pend  upon   the   material 

FIG.  3.  used  and  whether  or  not 

it  is  to  be  replaced  or  cov- 
ered by  a  better  material.  All  ballast  excepting  stone, 
slag,  and  washed  and  assorted  gravel  should  be  considered 
temporary.  For  good  gravel  ballast  it  is  customary  to 
use  a  maximum  depth  E  F  of  about  twelve  inches.  Sand, 
burnt  clay,  and  dirt  ballast  should  have  barely  enough 
depth  to  allow  the  tie  to  be  properly  embedded  and 
tamped  without  interfering  with  the  finished  surface  of 
the  subgrade  any  more  than  absolutely  necessary.  This 
small  depth  is  much  better  than  a  greater  thickness. 
If  these  inferior  ballasts  be  made  too  thick,  it  may 
be  necessary  to  dig  them  out  before  laying  the  stone 
ballast,  otherwise  in  getting  the  proper  depth  of  stone 
ballast  it  would  require  the  grade  to  be  raised  higher 


PERMANENT   WAY.  21 

than    desired,   besides    the    disadvantages    mentioned 
in  If  25. 

In  Fig.  3  it  is  seen  that  the  tie  is  not  imbedded  as  in 
rock  ballast,  Fig.  1,  but  that  the  ballast  slopes  away  from 
the  lower  corner  of  the  tie  and  rises  to  the  height  of  the 
top  of  the  tie  only  at  the  center.  This  is  on  account  of 
the  less  perfect  drainage  of  the  ballast  materials  with  the 
corresponding  tendency  to  hasten  the  decay  of  the  tie. 
It  is  seen  that  the  track  can  be  pushed  out  of  line  more 
easily  than  in  stone  ballast,  both  on  account  of  the 
smaller  surface  of  the  tie  in  contact  with  the  ballast,  and 
also  on  account  of  all  ballasts  having  a  smaller  holding 
force  per  unit  of  area  of  the  tie  than  rock  and  slag  bal- 
last. 

27.  Laying  Ballast. — The  kind  of  ballast  to  be  used 
is  governed  by  the  class  of  the  railroad  and  the  amount 
of  traffic  to  be  carried.     On  a  first-class,  or  trunk  line, 
railroad  the  ballast  is  essential  as  soon  as  the  track  is 
laid  and  before  the  track  can  be  put  in  operation.     The 
track  is  spiked  together  as  near  as  possible  to  its  final 
location  on  the  roadbed,  and  put  in  condition  that  the 
construction  train  can  be  pushed  slowly  over  it,  cars  of 
ballast  are  pushed  ahead  on  it,  and  the  ballast  is  de- 
posited on  each  side  of  the  track,  and  sometimes  in  the 
center  of  track.     The  track  is  jacked  up,  the  ballast  is 
forked  under  it,  and  the  track  is  tamped  into  true  line 
and  surface.     In  this  method  of  ballasting  no  traffic  ex- 
cepting the  necessary  construction  trains  pass  over  the 
road  until  it  is  thrown  open  to  regular  service. 

28.  Economy  and  Cost  of  Ballast.— On  a  line  where 
the  traffic  is  comparatively  light  and  the  ballast  must  be 


22  RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

hauled  a  long  distance,  the  track  is  lined  up  and  surfaced 
with  as  little  sand  or  dirt  ballast  as  possible,  and  is 
ballasted  by  the  maintenance  of  way  force  working  be- 
tween regular  trains,  the  line  in  the  mean  time  being  in 
service  with  speed  limits. 

Ballast  in  first-class  construction  is  almost  entirely  a 
matter  of  first  cost.  After  the  full  amount  of  ballast  is 
laid  very  little  more  is  required  to  keep  the  track  in  true 
line  and  surface.  On  light  traffic  roads  the  whole  line 
will  not  be  ballasted  at  first,  and  a  continuous  supply  of 
ballast  will  be  needed  until  the  whole  line  is  ballasted. 

The  cost  of  ballast  in  the  track  depends  upon  (a)  the 
first  cost  of  the  material  as  it  comes  to  the  railroad,  or 
f.  o.  b.  if  the  supply  is  along  the  line,  (b)  on  the  distance 
from  the  source  of  supply  to  the  place  where  it  is  to  be 
Used,  and  (c)  on  the  method  of  handling.  The  cost  of 
stone  ballast  in  the  track  averages  about  $1.25  per  cu. 
yd.  Dirt  ballast  will  cost  possibly  twenty-five  cents  per 
cubic  yard  in  the  track,  the  principal  part  of  the  cost 
being  for  surfacing  the  track.  The  other  kinds  of  bal- 
last cost  somewhere  between  these  limits. 


ARTICLE  III. 
CROSS-TIES  AND  TIE  PLATES. 

29.  The  Function  of  Cross-ties. — Cross-ties  re- 
ceived their  name  in  the  first  place  in  order  to  distin- 
guish this  method  of  supporting  the  rails  from  the  Ion- 


PERMANENT  WAY. 


23 


gitudinal  supports,  or  stringers;  they  are  now  generally 
called  ties.  Cross-ties  hold  the  rails  in  position  and 
transfer  the  pressure  of  the  engine  and  train  through 
the  ballast  to  the  subgrade.  There  has  been  quite  a 


FIG.  4. — STONE  STRINGER,  PORTAGE  RAILROAD. 


development  from  the  original  rail  support  to  the  present 
tie.  The  first  railroad  had  longitudinal  stone  or  timber 
stringers  upon  which  the  rails  were  fastened,  the  rails 
consisting  of  simply  enough  iron  to  furnish  a  wearing 
surface,  while  the  stringers  carried  the  weight,  Fig.  4. 


24  RAILROAD   TRACK   AND    CONSTRUCTION. 

After  rails  which  could  carry  the  load  between  supports 
were  invented,  the  ends  of  the  rails  rested  on  stone 
blocks,  Fig.  5.  As  the  design  of  the  rail  improved  it 
was  found  that  wooden  cross-ties  made  a  better  riding 
track  and  were  less  expensive  than  stone  blocks.  There 
were  many  different  designs  for  supporting  the  rail,  but 
the  above  illustrate  the  general  principle  and  indicate 
the  line  of  development. 


FIG.  f>. — STONE  BLOCK,  FRENCHTOWN  AND  NEW  CASTLE  RAILROAD. 

30.  Kind  of  Wood  for  Ties. — When  the  demand  for 
wood  for  commercial  purposes  was  less  and  fewer  ties 
were  needed,  ties  were  much  cheaper  and  the  better 
grades  of  wood  could  be  easily  obtained  for  them,  nearly 
all  railroad  ties  being  white  oak.  The  table  on  p.  25 
shows  the  cross-tie  data  for  1905. 

Oak  is  the  most  desirable  timber  for  cross-ties,  and  is 
found  in  several  varieties,  white  oak,  post  oak,  and  rock 
oak  being  the  better  varieties.  Oak  is  used  for  many 


PERMANENT  WAY. 


25 


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c<i  »o  o  I-H  T-H  T-5  '  cd  ^o  <M'  ci  06  <M'  <N  T-! 

1-HCOCOCOCOT-H  T-lC^iOC^OO         <N-      ^ 

l^-LOcOOOT-HO^fOSt^OOO^O 
qj  vju  tii-j  T— n  to  ^^  OS  T-H  00  Os  CO  OS  O  C*Q 

•^  ^T-TcT>o'co"t>-~o'co''orco"~t^"o 

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.  .  kO  T-H  Tt<   N  CO        T-H 

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s- 

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LOOrx<N^T^iOip^>O  cq  T-H        CO^ 

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5  . ^    ..... 

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:  :  :|    3 

i^    H 


26 


RAILROAD  TRACK  AND  CONSTRUCTION. 


purposes  other  than  ties,  and  on  account  of  the  great 
demand  for  it,  its  slow  growth,  and  its  increasing  scarcity, 
the  proportionate  use  of  the  softer  and  quicker  growing 
woods  is  becoming  much  greater;  the  same  may  be  said 
for  long-leaf  yellow  pine,  the  great  demand  for  which 
will  soon  make  it  very  hard  to  obtain.  The  use  of  cypress 
and  redwood  ties  is  increasing  very  rapidly. 

The  price  of  ties  has  increased  three-fold  in  the  last 
twenty  years.  The  following  table  *  gives  the  cost  of  ties 
in  1905; 

TABLE  III. 

VALUE  OF  TIES  PURCHASED  BY  STEAM  RAILROADS  OF  THE  UNITED 
STATES  IN  1905. 


KIND  OF  WOOD. 

NUMBER. 

AVERAGE 
COST 
PER  TIE. 

TOTAL. 

Oak 

34  677  304 

$0  55 

$19  072  517  20 

Pine 

18  351  037 

42 

7  707  435  54 

Cedar 

6  962  927 

44 

3  063  643  88 

Chestnut 

4  717  604 

48 

2  264  449  92 

Douglas  fir 

3  633  276 

33 

1  199  981  08 

Cypress 

3  483  746 

33 

1  149  636  18 

Tamarack  

3  060  082 

36 

1  101  629  52 

Hemlock  

1  713  090 

33 

565  319  70 

Redwood  

590852 

.20 

118,170.40 

Western  larch  

311,120 

.45 

140,004.00 

Spruce  

148,168 

.35 

51,858.80 

Birch 

35  500 

40 

14  200  00 

Beech 

34227 

40 

13  690  80 

Maple 

25  500 

40 

10  200.00 

Miscellaneous  

236  894 

48 

113,709.12 

Total  

77,981,227 



$36,585,446.14 

31.  Number  of  Cross-ties  Required. — Cross- ties  are 
becoming  one  of  the  greatest  problems  that  confronts 
*  Circular  43,  Forest  Service,  U.  S.  Dept.  of  Agriculture. 


PERMANENT  WAY.  27 

railroad  managements.  There  were  in  June,  1906, 
according  to  the  Report  of  the  Interstate  Commerce 
Commission,  224,363  miles  of  steam  railroads  and  319,- 
106  miles  of  track  in  operation  in  the  United  States. 
According  to  Table  III,  78,000,000  ties  were  used  in  1905. 
Under  normal  conditions  an  oak  tie  will  last  ten  to 
twelve  years,  and  a  hemlock  tie  will  last  four  years,  the 
other  woods  having  an  average  life  somewhere  between 
these  two  limits;  consequently,  as  the  greater  proportion 
of  the  softer  woods  come  into  use,  the  average  life  of  rail- 
road ties  decreases,  being  now  about  seven  years. 

Assuming  2500  ties  per  mile,  there  were  about  900,000,- 
000  ties  in  track  in  the  United  States  in  1906  on  the 
steam  railroads  alone;  and  assuming  an  average  life 
of  seven  years,  128,000,000  ties  were  required  for  re- 
newals in  1907,  to  which  must  be  added  the  ties  needed 
for  new  track.  On  account  of  the  mileage  of  track  in- 
creasing rapidly  and  the  decreasing  average  life  of  a  tie, 
the  cross-tie  problem  has  become  a  very  serious  one. 

32.  Life  of  Ties. — The  three  principal  causes  which 
tend  to  destroy  a  tie  are  as  follows:  (1)  Decay;  (2)  in- 
jury in  spiking;  and  (3)  the  cutting  of  the  tie  by  the 
base  of  the  rail.  The  decay  of  a  tie  is  governed  by  the 
climate,  the  ballast,  the  time  of  year  it  is  cut,  and  the 
amount  to  which  it  is  seasoned.  In  the  colder  and  drier 
climates  a  tie  lasts  longer  than  in  the  warmer  and  damper 
climates.  The  warm,  damp  climate  and  the  accompany- 
ing destruction  by  insects  shorten  the  life  of  a  tie  to  one 
or  two  years  in  some  cases.  There  is  a  tendency  for  water 
to  get  into  the  tie  through  the  fibers  of  the  tie  injured 
in  spiking  and  to  hasten  the  decay  of  the  tie,  particularly 


28  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

where  traffic  is  heavy  and  rails  must  be  replaced,  which 
is  done  in  many  cases  by  driving  the  spikes  in  another 
part  of  the  tie  without  plugging  up  the  old  holes.  The 
amount  of  the  cutting  of  the  tie  by  the  base  of  the  rail 
depends  upon  the  hardness  of  the  wood  and  the  weight 
and  amount  of  traffic.  This  will  be  discussed  later 
under  the  head  of  Tie-plates. 

33.  Cause  of  Decay  of  Wood. — The  decay  of  timber 
depends  upon  the  amount  of  water  in  the  wood.  Water 
may  occur  in  wood  in  three  conditions:*  (1)  It  forms 
the  greater  part  (over  90  per  cent.)  of  the  protoplasmic 
contents  of  the  living  cells ;  (2)  it  saturates  the  walls  of  all 
cells ;  and  (3)  it  entirely  or  at  least  partly  fills  the  cavities  of 
the  lifeless  cells,  fibers,  and  vessels;  in  the  sapwood  of 
pine  it  occurs  in  all  three  forms;  in  the  heart- wood  only 
in  the  second  form — it  merely  saturates  the  walls.  This 
accounts  for  the  greater  durability  of  long-leaf  yellow 
pine. 

It  is  generally  supposed  that  trees  contain  less  water 
in  winter  than  in  summer.  This  is  evidenced  by  the 
popular  saying  that  "the  sap  is  down  in  the  winter." 
This  is  probably  not  always  the  case. 

Decay  is  caused  by  low  forms  of  plant  life  called  fungi, 
which  grow  in  wood,  and  by  so  doing  disintegrate  and  dis- 
solve portions  of  the  wood  fiber.  The  necessary  condi- 
tions for  the  development  and  growth  of  wood-destroying 
fungi  are — (1)  water,  (2)  air,  (3)  organic  food  materials, 
.and  (4)  a  certain  amount  of  heat.  It  is,  therefore,  neces- 
sary to  get  rid  of  the.  water,  and  as  much  of  the  organic 
food  materials  as  possible. 

*  Bulletin  41,  Bureau  of  Forestry,  U.  S.  Dept.  of  Agriculture. 


PERMANENT  WAY.  29 

34.  Seasoning  Timber. — Seasoning  timber  consists 
of  drying  it  into  such  condition  that  it  will  best  resist 
decay.  This  will  be  accomplished  for  most  hard  woods 
by  cutting  it  at  the  best  season  and  then  allowing  it  to 
dry,  or  season,  thoroughly.  This  is  more  important  than 
ever  before.  Formerly  timber  was  cheap  and  easy  to 
obtain  and  very  little  attention  was  paid  to  its  lasting 
qualities,  particularly  when  used  for  ties.  Good  tie 
material  has  now  become  so  scarce  and  the  price  has 
increased  to  such  an  extent  that  strict  attention  must 
be  paid  to  the  economy  of  the  question. 

Hardwood  timber  should  be  cut  when  the  sap  is  down, 
as  it  will  then  contain  a  minimum  amount  of  water  and 
sap  which  contains  albuminous  substances,  starch,  sugar, 
and  oils,  which  form  the  food-supply  necessary  to  start 
the  growth  of  the  fungus  which  causes  decay.  If  the 
-timber  is  cut  when  the  sap  is  down,  there  is  not  only  less 
of  the  fermenting  substance  in  the  wood,  but  the  pores 
of  the  wood  are  more  closed  and  moisture  has  more 
difficulty  in  entering.  The  best  time  for  cutting  timber 
is  between  October  and  March,  depending  upon  the 
particular  region  and  the  kind  of  timber,  January  being 
probably  the  best  time. 

All  water  should  be  thoroughly  dried  out  of  the  wood, 
which  is  done  either  by  proper  exposure  to  the  air  for 
possibly  a  year  or  more,  or  by  the  quicker  and  artificial 
method  of  "kiln-drying."  The  better  method  to  use 
will  depend  upon  circumstances;  the  cost  in  the  slow, 
natural  method  being  simply  that  of  piling  the  timber 
properly  and  the  interest  on  the  money  invested.  If 
ties  are  not  kiln-dried,  they  should  be  piled  as  shown 


30 


RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


in  Fig.  6,  and  allowed  to  thoroughly  season.  Spaces 
should  be  left  between  the  ties,  as  shown  in  the  figure, 
to  allow  the  air  free  access,  and  if  they  are  not  put 
under  roof,  the  top  layer  of  ties  should  be  placed  as 


FIG.  6. 

close  together  as  possible  in  order  to  protect  the  pile 
from  rain. 

35.  Hewed  vs.  Sawed  Ties. — Cross-ties  are  hewed 
or  sawed.  Hewed  ties  are  better  be- 
cause hewing  closes  the  surface  pores 
of  the  wood,  while  sawing  opens  them, 
thus  allowing  the  water  to  enter  more 
freely,  with  the  consequent  greater 
tendency  to  decay.  It  is  difficult  to 
hew  a  poor  stick  of  timber  into  a  tie, 
while  a  crooked  piece  of  wood  may 
be  sawed  so  that  only  a  very  close 
inspection  will  reveal  its  imperfections.  One  oak  tie  is 
usually  made  from  each  length  of  timber;  it  is  dressed  to 
the  specified  thickness  within  }  of  an  inch,  and  the  bark 
removed  from  the  other  two  faces,  as  shown  in  Fig.  7. 


FIG.  7. 


PERMANENT  WAY.  31 

When  only  one  tie  can  be  made  from  a  length  of  timber, 
there  is  no  more  waste  in  hewing  than  in  sawing,  since  the 
parts  that  are  chipped  or  sawed  off  are  too  small  to  make 
lumber,  but  where  the  timber  is  large  and  more  than 
one  tie  can  be  cut  from  it,  it  is  more  economical  to  saw 
it.  It  will  be  economical  to  saw  a  log  as  shown  in  Fig. 
7,  since  the  lower  part  of  the  log  can  be  cut  into  standard 
sizes,  the  smaller  pieces  in  the  figure  being  three  by  four 
inches. 

On  account  of  the  growing  scarcity  of  timber  and 
the  waste  that  is  sometimes  occasioned  in  hewing,  the 
United  States  Department  of  Agri- 
culture in  its  Forest  Service  Bulletins 
advocates  the  sawing  of  timber  into 
ties. 

For  practically  all  kinds  of  wood, 
excepting  oak,  it  is  specified  that  all 
sap-wood  must  be  removed  except-  FlG-  s- 

ing  a  limited  amount  on  the  corners. 
The  maximum   amount   of   sap-wood  allowed  on   the 
corners  is  not  more  than  one  inch  radially  across  the 
grain  (a  c),  or  If  inches  on  the  face  of  the  tie  (a  ft),  as 
shown  in  Fig.  8. 

36.  Size  of  Ties. — Each  railroad  has  its  own  standard 
sizes  for  cross-ties,  and  hardly  two  agree.  Many  roads 
classify  into  first,  second,  and  third  class,  but  on  account 
of  the  different  standards  a  first-class  tie  on  one  road 
may  correspond  to  a  second-class  on  another,  and  vice 
versa.  The  American  Engineering  and  Maintenance 
of  Way  Association,  in  1904,  adopted  the  following  pro- 
posed tie  classification : 


32  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

TABLE  IV. 


CLASS. 

BREADTH. 

THICKNESS. 

LENGTH. 

A.. 

9  inches 

7  inches 

8  85  or  9  feet 

B 

8     " 

7      ' 

8  85  or  9   ' 

C.. 

9     " 

6      ' 

8  85  or  9   ' 

D.... 

8     " 

6      ' 

8  85  or  9   ' 

E.... 

7     " 

6     ' 

8  85  or  9   ' 

F  

6      " 

6      ' 

8  8  5  or  9   ' 

Ties  in  use  at  present  on  steam  railroads  range  in  di- 
mensions as  follows:  Width  of  narrowest  of  the  faces, 
6  to  12  inches;  thickness,  6  to  8  inches;  and  length,  8  to 
9J  feet.  The  average  size  of  a  first-class  tie  is  8  inches 
wide,  7  inches  thick  or  deep,  and  8J  feet  long.  The  ends 
are  sawed  off  square.  Ties  should  be  laid  on  their  broad- 
est face,  as  shown  in  Fig.  7. 

37.  Inspection  of  Ties. — Ties  should  not  be  smaller 
than  the  dimensions  specified,  should  not  have  knots 
that  will  interfere  with  spiking  or  loose  knots,  and  should 
be  sound.     Soundness  consists  principally  in  being  free 
from  worm-holes,  wind  shakes,  and  dead  timber.     When 
delivered  to  the  railroad,  they  must  be  piled  in  a  specified 
manner  and  place.     The  manner  of  piling  the  ties  must 
be  such  that  they  cannot  only  be  seasoned  properly, 
but  they  must  also  be  convenient  for  inspection.     They 
are  inspected  for  the  above  requirements,  marked  in  a 
substantial  manner,  and  all  the  ties  not  up  to  specifi- 
cations are  either  rejected  entirely  or  accepted  as  a  lower 
class  and  paid  for  at  a  correspondingly  lower  rate. 

38.  Spacing  of  Ties. — The  number  of  ties  per  rail 
length  depends  upon  the  standards  of  the  various  rail- 
roads.    These  standards  are  governed  to  a  great  extent 


PERMANENT  WAY.  33 

by  the  class  and  amount  of  traffic,  the  size  and  variety 
of  the  tie,  and  the  kind  of  rail  joint  used.  Most  railroads 
have  at  least  two  standards  of  spacing,  one  for  main  line 
and  another  for  yards  and  sidings.  The  number  of  ties 
used  ranges  from  14  per  30-foot  rail  to  19  ties  per  33-foot 
rail.  Some  railroads  use  two  more  ties  per  rail  on  curves 
than  on  tangents ;  these  railroads  seem  to  be  divided  into 
two  general  classes;  "viz.,  those  using  16  and  18,  and  those 
using  14  and  16  ties  per  30-foot  rail  on  tangent  and  curve 
respectively.  One  of  the  large  eastern  railroads  speci- 
fies 16  ties  10  inches  wide,  7  inches  thick,  and  8J  feet  long 
per  33-foot  rail.  According  to  the  above  spacing  the 
number  of  ties  per  mile  of  single  track  ranges  from  2464 
to  3040. 

39.  Planting  Trees  for  Ties. — Ties  are  becoming 
scarce  and  are  advancing  rapidly  in  price.  In  the  past, 
timber  has  been  cut  without  any  provision  for  the  future, 
and  the  supply  is  rapidly  becoming  exhausted.  For- 
merly it  was  possible,  in  the  eastern  part  of  the  country, 
to  contract  for  white-oak  ties  anywhere  along  the  line 
of  the  railroads  and  have  them  delivered  at  a  point  con- 
venient for  storage  or  shipment;  in  some  cases  these 
same  railroads  are  using  pine  ties  and  must  haul  them 
1000  miles,  and  place  their  order  far  in  advance.  One 
of  these  roads  paid  sixty  cents  for  yellow  pine  ties  in  1905, 
and  seventy-three  cents  in  1906,  the  price  increasing 
seven  cents  per  tie  in  six  months.  The  growing  scarcity 
of  timber  for  ties  has  caused  several  railroads  to  plant 
large  tracts  of  land  in  timber.  Fortunately,  land  other- 
wise of  little  value  may  be  used  for  this  purpose.  The 
Pennsylvania  Railroad  west  of  Pittsburg  planted  catalpa 


34  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

trees  along  its  right  of  way  twenty-five  years  ago,  but 
the  results  were  unsatisfactory.  During  the  last  few 
years  they  have  been  planting  yellow  locust  trees  on  an 
extensive  scale.*  The  trees  thus  planted  are  seedlings 
two  or  three  years  old,  and  cost,  including  labor  of  plant- 
ing, about  eight  cents  each.  From  1902  to  1906  the  above 
company  planted  about  1,300,000  trees.  "There  is  prob- 
ably no  other  timber  which  combines  so  well  the  qualities 
of  durability  and  hardness  as  does  the  yellow  locust." 
"  Evidences  of  its  longevity  in  use  as  tie  timber  are  fre- 
quent on  our  road"  (Pennsylvania).  "The-  resistance 
of  locust  timber  to  cutting  under  the  rail  is  said  to  exceed 
that  of  white  oak,  and  it  has  been  demonstrated  upon 
our  main  lines  that  it  is  not  so  much  the  decay  of  the 
timber  as  it  is  the  cutting  in  by  the  rail,  which  wears  out 
or  decreases  the  life  of  the  tie."  "The  average  life  of  a 
strictly  white-oak  tie  is  about  ten  years — we  expect  to 
get  longer  life  out  of  the  locust." 

"  The  requirements  for  1906  will  cause  more  than 
1,266,000  acres,  or  1980  square  miles,  to  be  cleared.".f 
"  If  conservative  forestry  methods  were  used  and  a  per- 
petual supply  preserved,  a  forest  of  more  than  35,000 
square  miles,  or  the  area  of  the  state  of  Indiana,  would 
have  to  be  set  aside  for  the  timber  alone." 

40.  Preservation  of  Ties. — On  account  of  the  in- 
creasing demand  for  ties,  the  softer  woods  used,  and  the 
advancing  price,  it  has  now  reached  the  point  where  it  is 
economical  to  use  artificial  means  of  prolonging  the  life 
of  a  tie.  This  is  done  in  the  following  ways :  (1)  Treating 

*  Jos.  T.  Richards,  before  the  American  Forest  Congress,  1905 
f  Railroad  Gazette,  March  16,  1906. 


PERMANENT  WAY.  35 

the  tie  to  prevent  decay;  and  (2)  the  use  of  tie-plates 
to  prevent  the  base  of  the  rail  from  cutting  into  the  tie. 

The  economy  of  treating  depends  principally  upon  two 
things;  viz.,  the  location^and  the  traffic.  In  sections 
of  the  country  where  decay  is  rapid,  owing  to  climatic 
conditions  and  poor  ballast,  it  will  pay  to  treat  the  tie 
with  some  process,  not  too  expensive,  that  will  make  the 
tie  last  until  the  wear  of  the  base  of  the  rail  causes  its 
destruction,  provided  the  increased  life  of  the  tie  is  great 
enough  to  warrant  the  expense  of  treating  it.  In  the 
northern  part  of  the  United  States,  under  heavy  traffic, 
the  tie  is  worn  out  by  the  base  of  the  rail  and  respiking 
before  the  tie  decays,  even  when  tie-plates  are  used; 
consequently  it  would  be  a  useless  expense  to  treat  the 
tie.  One  advantage  of  treating  ties  with  a  preservative 
process  is  that  classes  of  wood  that  are  otherwise  of  very 
little  value  for  ties  make  a  serviceable  tie  when  so  treated. 
These  soft  woods  are  cheaper  in  first  cost  and  absorb  the 
antiseptics  much  more  readily  than  the  harder  woods, 
and  consequently  are  cheaper  to  treat.  The  use  of  pre- 
servative methods  is,  therefore,  an  economical  question 
that  must  be  worked  out  by  each  railroad  according  to 
local  conditions. 

41.  General  Principles  of  Preservative  Methods. — 
The  principle  of  all  preservative  treatment  of  timber  is  to 
extract  all  the  sap  and  then  fill  the  pores  of  the  wood  with 
the  antiseptic.  Most  of  the  sap  and  harmful  elements 
are  removed  by  cutting  the  timber  at  the  proper  season 
(1f  34)  and  by  thorough  seasoning  (]f  34) .  In  some  of  the 
methods  the  thoroughness  of  the  seasoning  is  not  of  vital 
importance.  There  are  a  number  of  methods  of  preserv- 


36  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

ing  timber,  among  the  principal  of  which  are  kyanizing, 
Burnettizing,  vulcanizing,  and  creosoting. 

42.  Kyanizing. — Kyanizing  is  the  process  of  soaking 
the  timber  in  a  solution  of  Bichloride  of  mercury,  or 
corrosive  sublimate,  for  several  days,  the  length  of  time 
which  the  timber  is  soaked  depending  upon  the  dimen- 
sions of  the  timber.     A  tie  seven  inches  thick  should 
be  allowed  to  soak  eight  days;   and  each  tie  will  absorb 
about  one-fourth  of  a  pound  of  the  bichloride.     The  tie 
is  then  allowed  to  dry  in  the  air  for  about  two  weeks. 
The  fumes  from  the  chemical  are  poisonous  and  objec- 
tionable to  work  with,  and  its  solubility  makes  it  liable 
to  wash  out  of  the  wood  and  leave  it  unprotected. 

43.  Burnettizing. — In  the  Burnettizing  method  chlo- 
ride of  zinc  is  used.     The  timber  is  placed  in  a  vacuum 
which  removes  all  of  the  remaining  sap,  and  then  has 
the  solution  forced  into   its  pores  by   pressure.     The 
process  costs  from  twelve  to  twenty-five  cents  per  tie, 
depending  upon  the  amount  of  the  chloride  of  zinc  in  the 
solution.     This  process  is  subject  to  the  same  objection 
as  kyanizing,  in  that  the  chemical  is  rather  easily  washed 
out.     A  peculiarity  of  the  process  is  that  if  too  much  of 
the  chloride  is  used,  the  timber  is  made  brittle  and  its 
strength  reduced. 

44.  Vulcanizing. — In  the  process  of  vulcanizing  no 
attempt  is  made  to  expel  the  sap  from  the  wood,  the 
theory  being  that  the  heat  coagulates  the  albumen  and 
the  distillation  of  the  sap  transforms  the  sap  into  various 
wood-preserving   compounds,    such   as   wood   creosote. 
The  process  consists  in  placing  the  timber  in  a  cylinder, 
heating  it  to  a  temperature  of  300°  to  500°  F.,  under  an 


PERMANENT  WAY.  37 

air  pressure  of  100  to  200  pounds  per  square  inch;  this 
coagulates  the  albumen  in  the  sap,  evaporates  the  water, 
and  partly  closes  the  pores  of  the  wood.  It  is  claimed 
that  the  heat  sterilizes  the  wood  and  produces  chemical 
changes  in  the  wood  which  give  it  an  antiseptic  character. 
The  elevated  railroads  of  New  York  city  used  it  exten- 
sively. In  one  case  where  the  life  of  an  untreated  tie  was 
six  years,  the  treated  ties  lasted  over  seventeen  years. 
The  treatment  costs  about  25  cents  per  tie,  and  re- 
quires about  eight  hours. 

45.  Creosoting. — Creosoting  consists  in  impregnating 
the  wood  with  creosote.     Creosote  is  obtained  by  dis- 
tilling either  wood  or  coal-tar.     The  coal-tar  product 
is  called  "dead  oil  of  coal-tar,"  and  the  wood  product 
is  called  "wood  creosote."     Dead  oil  of  coal-tar  is  more 
expensive  than  wood  creosote,  but  is  much  more  effi- 
cient as  an  antiseptic,  and  is  preferred  in  first-class  work. 
The  dead  oil  should  contain  no  water,  ammonia,  or  ingre- 
dients soluble  in  water,  and  should  be  completely  liquid 
at  100°  F.     The  oils  most  desirable  in  the  oil  of  tar 
classes  are  those  which  boil  at  medium  temperatures, 
as  those  that  boil  at  low  temperatures  are  too  volatile  and 
costly,  while  those  that  boil  at  the  higher  temperatures 
are  too  heavy  for  effective  penetration.     The  latter  con- 
tain too  much  solid  matter,  or  substances  that  harden 
soon  after  penetrating  the  cooler  parts  of  the  interior, 
thus  obstructing  the  pores  of  the  wood  before  its  im- 
pregnation is  complete. 

46.  Blythe   Process   of  Creosoting. — There   are  a 
number    of    different    methods  of    creosoting,    varying 
mostly  in  the  details.    In  the  Blythe  process  there  are 


38  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

three  stages;  viz.,  seasoning,  extraction  of  the  sap  and 
moisture,  and  the  injection  of  the  oil.  The  ties,  if  not 
well  seasoned,  are  sometimes  kiln-dried,  so  as  to  evapo- 
rate all  moisture  possible.  They  are  then  placed  in  large 
cylinders,  into  which  live  steam  is  admitted  and  held  for 
several  hours.  The  object  of  steaming  is  to  liquefy 
the  portions  of  the  sap  which  have  solidified  during  the 
process  of  seasoning.  After  the  steam  is  let  off  the  air  is 
exhausted  and  a  partial  vacuum  is  maintained  for  a  time, 
the  result  being  that  the  moisture  and  liquids  formed 
by  the  steam  in  the  interior  of  the  timber  are  drawn 
out,  clearing  the  way  for  the  ingress  of  the  creosote. 
While  the  vacuum  is  held,  heat  is  maintained  by  steam 
coils  to  prevent  the  vapors  from  condensing  and  remain- 
ing in  the  timber.  After  the  products  of  this  treatment 
are  drawn  off  the  cylinder  is  then  filled  with  creosote  at 
about  175°  F.,  and  held  under  pressure  until  the  desired 
amount  of  creosote  has  been  absorbed. 

47.  Columbia  Process  of  Creosoting. — One  of  the 
latest  methods  is  that  of  the  Columbia  Creosoting  Com- 
pany, a  description  of  whose  plant  is  given  in  the  Rail- 
road Gazette  of  March  16, 1906.  This  company  has  a 
two-retort  plant  with  a  capacity  of  2,000,000  ties  per 
year.  The  timber  is  not  steamed  before  injecting  the 
preservative.  Only  air-seasoned  timber  is  treated  and 
the  timber  is  not  exposed  to  heat  of  any  sort,  dry  or  steam, 
during  the  treatment.  The  ties  are  placed  in  the  cylinder, 
and  it  is  filled  with  oil  by  gravity  from  the  storage  tanks. 
The  pressure  pump  is  then  started  and  additional  oil 
pumped  in  to  give  the  required  saturation,  the  pressure 
maintained  being  180  pounds  per  sq.  in.  The  pressure 


PERMANENT  WAY.  39 

is  removed  and  the  oil  is  allowed  to  flow  from  the  cylinder 
to  an  underground  tank;  then  the  free  oil  in  the  timber 
is  withdrawn  by  the  creation  of  an  almost  instantaneous 
vacuum  by  a  process  which  is  one  of  the  special  features 
of  the  plant,  and  by  means  of  which  the  amount  of  oil 
left  in  a  tie  can-  be  varied  from  1J  gallons  up  to  any 
amount  required.  By  this  process  a  20-inch  vacuum 
can  be  obtained  in  fifteen  minutes  and  a  25-inch  vacuum 
in  thirty-five  to  forty-five  minutes,  a  temperature  of  160° 
F.  being  maintained  in  the  retort  meanwhile. 

The  ties  are  loaded  upon  a  tram  car,  which  is  run  into 
the  retort,  the  ties  being  held  in  place  by  steel  bails  which 
are  If  inches  in  diameter  and  too  stiff  to  be  sprung  out 
of  shape  by  forcing  in  an  extra  tie.  The  loaded  car 
is  designed  for  a  clearance  of  only  f  inch  in  the  cylinder. 
The  cylinders,  or  retorts,  are  7  feet  in  diameter  and  130 
feet  long,  and  are  made  of  f-inch  steel  with  double 
riveted  circumferential  joints  and  triple  riveted  double- 
butt  longitudinal  seams.  The  cylinders  rest  in  cast-iron 
saddles  bearing  on  cast-iron  plates  bolted  to  concrete 
foundations.  Each  cylinder  is  anchored  at  the  middle, 
permitting  expansion  toward  both  ends,  and  has  a  door 
at  each  end. 

48.  Grade  of  Creosote  Used. — "The  creosote  used 
is  the  highest  grade  obtainable  in  America,  the  speci- 
fications requiring  a  boiling  point  of  220°  C.,  which  in- 
sures the  elimination,  before  use,  of  all  light  and  volatile 
fractions."  "The  contract  price  with  the  Big  Four  at 
the  Shirley  plant  is  thirty  cents  a  tie";  this  contract 
required  2J  gallons,  or  eight  pounds  of  oil  per  cubic  foot. 
Creosoting  has  long  been  considered  the  best  method  of 


40  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

preserving  timber,  but  the  cost  of  the  process  has  re- 
tarded its  use.  The  higher  price  of  timber,  and  particu- 
larly of  railroad  ties,  together  with  the  price  of  the 
process  of  treating  the  ties  being  reduced  to  reasonable 
figures,  brings  the  economy  of  using  treated  timber  with 
renewed  force  to  all  who  are  confronted  with  the  cross- 
tie  problem. 

49.  Economy  of  Treating  Ties.  —  The  economy  of 
using  treated  or  untreated  ties  may  be  determined  by  the 
following  method  : 

Let  T  =  cost  of  untreated  tie. 

P  =  cost  of  treating  the  tie. 

n  =  life  of  untreated  tie  in  years. 

N  =  life  of  treated  tie  in  years. 

r  =  rate  of  interest. 

S  =  capital  necessary  to  provide  for  depreci- 
ation. 

D  =  annual  depreciation. 

C  =  annual  cost  of  untreated  tie. 

Placing  S  at  compound  interest  : 

g  (1  -j_  r)n  =  T  +  S,  from  which 

T 
S  =  (l  +  r)n—  1  (*) 


The  annual  cost,  C,  of  the  untreated  tie  will  be  equal 
to  the  interest  on  the  first  cost,  plus  the  annual  depreci- 
ation, or  — 


50.  Annual  Cost  of  Untreated  Ties.—  From  formula 


PERMANENT  WAY.  41 

(3),  assuming  the  annual  rate  of  interest  at  five  per 
cent.,  the  following  tables  have  been  computed: 

TABLE  V. 
For  n  =  four  years. 

Cost  of  tie $0.40    $0.50    $0.60   $0.70    $0.80    $0.90   $1.00 

Annual  interest 020      .025      .030      .035      .040      .045      .050 

Annual  depreciation  .    .093      .116      .139      .163      .186      .209      .232 
Annual  cost 113      .141      .169      .198      .226      .254     .282 

TABLE  VI. 

For  n  =  six  years. 

Cost  of  tie $0.40   $0.50    $0.60    $0.70    $0.80    $0.90   $1.00 

Annual  interest 020      .025      .030      .035      .040      .045      .050 

Annual  depreciation  .    .059      .074      .088      .103      .118      .132      .147 
Annual  cost 079      .099      .118      .138      .158      .177     .197 

TABLE  VII. 
For  n  =  eight  years. 

Cost  of  tie $0.40    $0.50    $0.60    $0.70    $0.80   $0.90    $1.00 

Annual  interest 020      .025      .030      .035      .040      .045      .050 

Annual  depreciation  .    .042      .052      .063      .073      .084      .092      .105 
Annual  cost 062      .077      .093      .108      .124      .137      .155 


51.  Annual  Cost  of  Treated  Ties.  —  By  a  similar 
method,  T+P  being  the  first  cost,  the  annual  cost  of 
treated  ties  is  — 


From  formula  (4),  assuming  the  annual  rate  of  interest 
at  five  per  cent.,  the  following  tables  have  been  computed  : 

TABLE  VIII. 

For  N  =  eight  years. 
Cost  of  tie  and  treat- 

ment ............  $0.70    $0.80    $0.90    $1.00    $1.10    $1.20    $1.30 

Annual  interest  .......  035      .040      .045      .050      .055      .060      .065 

Annual  depreciation      .073      .084      .094      .105      .115      .126      .136 
Annual  cost  ........  108      .124      .139      .155      .170      .186      .201 


42  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND  CONSTRUCTION. 

TABLE  IX. 

For  N  =  ten  years. 
Cost  of  tie  and  treat- 
ment  $0.70   $0.80   $0.90   $1.00    $1.10    $1.20    $1.30 

Annual  interest 035      .040      .045      .050      .055      .060      .065 

Annual  depreciation  .    .056      .064      .071      .079      .087      .095      .103 
Annual  cost 091      .104      .116      .129      .142     .155     .168 

TABLE  X. 

For  N  =  twelve  years. 
Cost  of  tie  and  treat- 
ment  $0.70    $0.80    $0.90    $1.00    $1.10    $1.20    $1.30 

Annual  interest 035      .040      .045      .050      .055      .060      .065 

Annual  depreciation  .    .044      .050      .056      .063      .069      .075      .082 
Annual  cost 079      .090      .101      .113      .124      .135      .147 


52.  Metal  Cross-ties. — Metal  railroad  ties  have  been 
extensively  used  in  Germany  for  more  than  forty  years, 
a  report  having  been  made  on  them  in  1868,  and  in 
1889  Germany  had  9902  miles  of  iron  or  steel  ties  on 
their  railroads.     At  first  they  followed  along  the  general 
lines  of  the  earliest  railroad  track  in  endeavoring  to 
make  practically  a  continuous  rail  by  using  longitudinal 
metal  sleepers,  or  stringers,  instead  of  cross-ties,  and  in 
1889,  6181  miles  of  the  total  9902  miles  had  the  longi- 
tudinal sleepers,  or  stringers.     These  lost  favor,  and  by 
the  year  1900,  while  track  laid  with  metal  cross-ties  had 
increased  to  10,695  miles,  the  longitudinal  sleepers  had 
largely  disappeared.     In  1903,  11,534  miles  of  through, 
or  main,  track  had  steel  cross-ties  and  32,192  miles  had 
timber  cross-ties.     This  does  not  show  a  very  heavy  pro- 
portionate increase  in  the  use  of  steel  ties.* 

53.  Steel  Ties  in  the  United  States.— The  use  of 
steel  ties  in  the  United  States  is  entirely  in  an  experi- 
mental stage,  and  data  are  very  hard  to  obtain.     In  the 

*  Railroad  Gazette,  Sept.  14,  and  Oct.  19,  1906. 


PERMANENT  WAY.  43 

Railroad  Gazette  of  July  20,  1906,  is  printed  the  state- 
ment of  the  Carnegie  Steel  Co.  as  to  the  use  of  their  steel 
ties.  Prior  to  1906  the  following  roads  installed  these 
ties :  Pennsylvania  lines  west  of  Pittsburg,  Lake  Shore 
and  Michigan  Southern,  New  York  Central,  Bessemer 
and  Lake  Erie,  Manufacturers  Railway,  St.  Louis,  Mo., 
Pittsburg  Railways,  Cleveland  Electric  Co.;  Duluth 
and  Iron  Range,  and  Northern  Pacific  Railroads.  The 
following  railroads  and  railways  were  furnished  steel 
ties  for  1906  installation: 

Bessemer  and  Lake  Erie  Railroad 30  miles. 

Union  R.  R 11       " 

Baltimore  and  Ohio  R.  R 1  mile. 

Pennsylvania  R.  R 1       " 

Buffalo,  Rochester  and  Pittsburg  R.  R 1       " 

Mexico  Electric  Tramways 4  miles. 

International  Railway,  Buffalo 5       " 

Entre  Rios  Railway,  Argentine i  mile. 

Besides  the  above,  steel  ties  have  been  furnished  a 
number  of  other  railroads  in  lots  varying  from  10  to  100. 

54.  Carnegie  Steel  Ties. — There  are  two  general 
types  of  steel  ties,  viz.,  the  I-beam  and  the  trough- 
shaped  tie.  The  Carnegie  tie  is  of  the  first-mentioned 
type,  and  the  first  tie  consisted  of  a  plate  4J  inches  wide, 
riveted  to  the  top,  and  a  plate  8  inches  wide,  riveted  to 
the  bottom  of  a  4-inch  I-beam.  A  number  of  these  were 
laid  and  showed  no  deterioration  after  being  in  the  track 
seven  years,  while  some  of  the  wooden  ties  laid  at  the 
same  time  had  to  be  replaced.  The  Bessemer  and  Lake 
Erie  Railroad  laid  25,000  of  the  Carnegie  steel  ties  at 
points  which  gave  them  a  severe  test  and  found  them 
satisfactory. 

The  present  form  of  the  Carnegie  steel  tie  is  shown  in 


44 


RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


Figs.  9,  10,  11,  and  12.  The  cross-section  A  B  of  the 
main  part  of  the  tie  is  shown  in  Fig.  9;  the  top  or  head  to 
which  the  rail  is  fastened  is  4J  inches  wide,  \  inch  thick 
at  the  center,  and  -f^  inch  thick  near  the  edges.  The 


T 


SECTION  A-8 
FIG.  9. 


SECTION  C-D 
FIG.  10. 


web  is  |  inch  thick,  and  the  base  is  8  inches  wide,  J  inch 
thick  at  the  center,  and  -f^  inch  near  the  edges.  The  tie 
is  5J  inches  high,  8J  feet  long,  and  weighs  168  pounds,  or 
about  19.4  pounds  per  linear  foot.  In  order  to  prevent 
the  tie  from  moving  in  the  ballast,  at  6'  inches  from  each 


0                  0 
0                  0 

PLAN 

^1 

«f3,         \Q             ELEVATION 

FIG.  11. 

1 

) 

FIG.  12. 


end  of  the  tie  the  base  is  bent  as  shown  in  Fig.  10;  this 
bent  portion  is  1J  inches  wide  and  projects  J  inch  below 
the  balance  of  the  base.  The  plan  and  elevation  of  the 
tie  are  shown  in  Fig.  11. 


PERMANENT  WAY.  45 

The  rail  is  fastened  to  the  top  of  the  tie  by  means  of 
clips  shown  in  Fig.  12,  the  right  hand-portion  of  the 
figure  showing  a  joint  clip,  and  the  left  an  ordinary  clip. 
These  clips  are  designed  and  shaped  so  that  the  gauge 
can  be  adjusted  a  small  amount,  and  be  tightened  and 
hold  the  rail  firmly  in  place  after  the  parts  have  worn. 
The  bolts  are  f  inch  in  diameter,  three  inches  long  from 
the  inside  of  the  head,  and  the  head  is  set  at  an  angle  so 
that  it  will  have  a  firm  bearing  against  the  lower,  beveled 
€dge  of  the  head  of  the  tie. 

55.  The  York  Process  for  Rolling  Steel  Ties.— This 
method  is  shown  in  Fig.  13,  the  figure  representing  the 


"*•*! 
FIG.  13.  FIG.  14. 

section  of  a  worn-out  65-pound  rail,  which  has  been  re- 
rolled  so  that  the  head  of  the  rail  has  been  changed  into 
the  base  of  the  tie,  the  base  of  the  rail  and  the  web  being 
unchanged.  The  tie  is  4  inches  high,  4J  inches  wide  on 
the  head,  and  9  inches  wide  on  the  base. 

By  the  York  Process  the  rail  may  be  rolled  into  the 
shape  shown  in  Fig.  14,  with  concave  head  and  base,  the 
idea  being  that  this  form  gives  elasticity  to  the  track. 

56.  The  Hartford  Steel  Tie.— The  Hartford  tie  is  of 
the  trough-shaped  type,  and  the  cross-section  of  one 
form  of  it  is  shown  in  Fig.  15.  There  are  several  modi- 
fications in  the  shape  of  the  Hartford  tie,  the  principal 


46  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

one  being  in  the  amount  the  ends  are  turned  down  so  as 
to  resist  lateral  motion.  In*  1889  the  New  York  Central 
and  Hudson  River  R.  R.  laid  721  Hartford  steel  ties  8 
feet  long  under  80  pound  rails  on  a  stretch  of  1576  feet 
of  stone-ballasted  main  track.  The  ends  of  these  ties 
curved  downward  about  6  inches;  with  the  exception 
of  the  ends,  the  tie  was  straight.  These  ties  were  rolled 
Bessemer  steel,  weighed  150  pounds,  including  fasten- 
ings, and  cost  $3.11  each.  Before  laying  the  ties  they 
were  treated  with  a  coating  of  asphaltum  composition 
applied  at  a  temperature  of  300°  F.  The  results  with 


FIG.  15. 

this  tie  were  not  entirely  satisfactory.  Although  it 
made  a  good  showing  so  far  as  durability  was  concerned, 
it  was  found  difficult  to  throw  the  track  in  line  and  the 
expense  of  keeping  the  track  in  surface  was  about  twice 
the  cost  of  the  same  maintenance  item  in  an  equal 
length  of  track  laid  on  wooden  ties.  The  tendency  of 
the  ballast  was  to  work  away  from  the  tie  at  the  ends, 
loosening  the  tie  and  causing  it  and  the  fastenings  to 
rattle  while  trains  were  passing.  These  ties  were  re- 
moved after  ten  years'  service  under  about  50  trains  per 
day. 

*  Camp's  Notes  on  Track. 


PERMANENT  WAY.  47 

57.  Cost  and  Economy  of  Steel  Ties. — The  dis- 
advantages of  steel  ties  are — (1)  difficulty  of  keeping  the 
track  in  line  and  surface,  (2)  the  rail  fastenings  work 
loose,  and  (3)  the  high  cost.     Steel  ties  seem  to  have 
given  satisfaction  in  Europe  and  on  some  light  traffic 
roads  in  the  United  States,  but  have  not  been  sufficiently 
perfected  to  be  economical  on  the  eastern  main  line 
roads.     In  one  case  recently  the  bolts  sheared  off,  caus- 
ing a  very  serious  accident;  the  steel  ties  were  immedi- 
ately removed  and  the  track  relaid  with  oak  ties.     There 
is  no  question  of  the  durability  of  the  metal,  but,  as  men- 
tioned above,  they  are  hard  to  maintain,  and  the  fasten- 
ings work  loose.     The  roads  with  heavy  traffic  will  not 
take  up  the  question  of  steel  ties  seriously  until  the 
scarcity  and  high  cost  of  timber  compel  them  to  do  so. 

The  cost  of  a  steel  tie  depends  principally  upon  its 
w.eight,  and  in  round  numbers  the  cost  may  be  said  to 
range  between  $2.50  and  $3.50.  If  a  wooden  tie  costs 
$1.00  and  lasts  eight  years,  in  order  to  be  economical  a 
steel  tie  which  costs  $2.50  must  last  more  than  twice  as 
long  and  give  just  as  good  a  track. 

58.  Concrete  Cross-ties. — In  the  effort  to  find  a 
substitute  for  wooden  ties  a  number  of  different  forms  of 
concrete  and  reinforced  concrete  ties  have  been  patented. 
A  reinforced  concrete  tie  which  the  Ulster  and  Delaware 
Railroad  has  laid  as  an  experiment  is  described  in  the 
Railroad  Gazette  of  Sept.  23, 1904.     This  tie  is  shown  in 
Fig.  16,  and  consists  of  a  solid  prism  of  concrete,  8  feet 
long,  7  inches  thick,  and  battered  from  10  inches  wide  on 
the  bottom  to  8  inches  at  the  top.     They  are  molded  in 
wooden  forms  and  are  reinforced  by  a  piece  of  2J  by  -f$ 


48 


RAILROAD   TRACK   AND    CONSTRUCTION. 


inch  angle-iron  7  feet  long,  placed  with  the  corner  J  inch 
below  the  top  surface,  and  extending  to  within  6  inches 
of  the  ends  of  the  tie.  Tie  plates  8  by  9  inches  and  }  inch 
thick  are  embedded  flush  with  the  top  of  the  tie  on  inter- 
mediate ties  and  8  by  lOf  inches  under  joints.  The  rails 
are  fastened  by  two  f  by  3J  inch  square-headed  bolts 
passing  through  the  angle-iron  and  plate  as  shown  in 
the  figure,  and  by  means  of  cast-iron  clips.  The  clips 
are  shaped  as  shown  in  the  figure,  the  dimensions  being 


SECTION  A-B 


CUP  . 


FIG.  16. 


by  2  by  1  inch  over  all,  with  a  ^ 
|  inch  bolt,  the  grip  of  the  clip  having 
fit  neatly  over  the  flange  of  the  rail. 
part  of  Portland  cement,  two  parts  of 
and  four  parts  of  crushed  limestone 
through  a  f  inch  ring  was  used,  and 
was  old  angle-iron,  some  of  which  was 
by  7  feet.  The  cost  of  the  tie  was  42 
the  reinforcement,  and  the  weight  was 


inch  hole  for  the 
the  proper  angle  to 
A  mixture  of  one 
coarse  sharp  sand, 
which  would  pass 
the  reinforcement 
f  inch  by  3  J  inches 
cents,  exclusive  of 
about  450  pounds. 


PERMANENT  WAY.  49 

One  of  the  first  of  these  ties  showed  no  signs  of  failure  or 
of  loose  joints  after  being  in  the  track  more  than  a  year. 

59.  Economy  of  Reinforced  Concrete  Ties. — Most 
forms  of  concrete  ties  cost  nearly  or  quite  as  much  as 
steel  ties,  and  must  have  a  long  life  in  order  to  be  econom- 
ical.    The  results  of  some  experiments  show  this  form 
of  tie  to  be  a  failure  when  placed  in  stone  ballast  under 
heavy  traffic.     In  reinforced  concrete  ties  the  concrete 
shows  a  tendency  to  break  away  from  the  steel,  and  it  is 
also  difficult  to  keep  the  fastenings  that  hold  the  rail  to 
the  tie  from  working  loose.     The  fact  that  some  concrete 
ties  laid  on  a  concrete  foundation  for  city  railways  have 
shown  good  wearing  and  lasting  qualities 

leaves  this  method  a  possibility  for  the 
permanent  way  that  all  engineers  hope  to 
see  perfected. 

60.  Tie  Plates. — Tie  plates  are  steel 

or  wrought-iron  plates  placed  between  FIG.  17. 

the  base  of  the  rail  and  the  tie  to  pre- 
vent the  rail  from  cutting  into  the  tie  as  shown  in  Fig. 
17.  The  cutting  of  the  tie  by  the  rail  is  due  to  the 
pressure  of  the  rail  under  traffic,  and  the  movement  of 
the  rail,  aided  by  sand  and  dust,  which  causes  a  grinding 
action.  The  tie  plate  distributes  the  pressure  uniformly 
over  a  larger  area,  and  since  the  tie  plate  is  fixed  firmly 
to  the  tie,  the  wear  due  to  the  movement  of  the  rail  is 
between  the  rail  and  the  tie  plate. 

The  use  of  tie  plates  is  economical  only  when  the  tie  is 

soft  enough  to  be  worn  out  by  the  base  of  the  rail  before 

its  life  would  be  otherwise  ended  by  decay  or  respiking. 

Tie  plates  would  be  a  useless  expense  if  the  tie  would 

4 


50  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

hold  the  rail  without  them  until  the  end  of  the  natural 
life  of  the  tie,  as  will  generally  be  the  case  with  oak  ties. 
The  greatest  economy  comes  in  using  them  on  soft  woods 
of  long  lasting  capacity,  such  as  cedar,  pine,  redwood, 
etc.  In  some  woods,  such  as  longleaf  yellow  pine,  the 
economy  of  using  tie  plates  is  problematical. 

61.  Tie  Plates  on  Curves. — Ties  on  curves  are  sub- 
jected to  rougher  usage  by  the  base  of  the  rail  than  on 
tangents,  hence  in  many  cases  it  is  economical  to  use  tie 
plates  on  curves  when  the  same  class  of  ties  would  not 
need  them  on  tangents.     It  is  good  economy  to  use  tie 
plates,  even  on  hardwood  ties,  on  curves  with  a  radius  of 
1910  feet  or  less,  as  they  also  act  as  a  rail  brace.     The 
life  of  the  tie  should  in  any  case  be  prolonged  for  a  suffi- 
cient length  of  time  to  pay  for  the  cost  of  the  tie  plates. 
The  conditions  are  often  such  that  the  use  of  tie  plates 
is  of  doubtful  economy,  in  which  cases  the  custom  is  to 
put  tie  plates  on  a  portion  of  the  track  and  draw  con- 
clusions from  the  comparative  results.     Tie  plates  that 
are  used  on  curves  should  have  a  shoulder  against  which 
the  outer  flange  of  the  base  of  the  rail  rests,  thus  acting 
partially  as  a  rail  brace. 

62.  Types  of  Tie  Plates. — There  are  many  forms  of 
tie  plates,  varying  in  shape,  size,  method  of  holding  to 
the  ties,  and  in  other  details;  but  there  are  two  general 
types,  viz.,  those  that  do  not  prevent  lateral  movement 
of  the  rail  other  than  by  the  resistance  of  the  spikes,  and 
those  that  have  a  projection  on  the  top  surface  against 
which  the  outer  flange  of  the  base  of  the  rail  abuts. 

The  first  type,  with  the  plane  top,  is  illustrated  by 
the  Servis  tie  plate  shown  in  Fig.  18.     This  plate  is  held 


PERMANENT  WAY.  51 

in  place  on  the  tie  by  three  or  four  wedge-shaped  pro- 
jections on  the  bottom,  which  sink  into  the  wood  parallel 
to  the  grain  of  the  wood  and  also  by  the  spikes.  The 
rail  is  held  in  place  by  the  spikes  in  the  same  manner  as 
if  it  rested  on  the  tie  direct,  excepting  that  there  are 
usually  two  '  spikes  on  the  outer 
edge  of  the  rail.  This  type  sim- 
ply causes  the  pressure  of  the  rail 
to  be  spread  over  a  greater  area 
of  tie  and  prevents  the  rail  from  SERVIS  TIE  ELATED 

cutting  the  tie,  and  it  is  doubtful  FIG.  18. 

if  there  is  as  much  resistance  to 

the  spreading  of  the  rails  as  there  would  be  with  the 
same  spiking  without  any  plate.  Within  reasonable 
limits  the  larger  the  tie  plate,  the  better  on  soft  ties 
under  heavy  traffic. 

The  second  type  is  illustrated  by  the  Goldie  tie  plate 
shown  in  Fig.  19.  Instead  of  the  wedge-shaped  projec- 
tions running  the  length  of  the 
plate,  as  in  Fig.  18,  there  are  four 
wedge-shaped  points  near  the 
four  corners  of  the  plate,  which 
cut  into  the  wood  at  right  angles 


GOLDIE  TIE  PLATE 


FIG.  19.  to  the  grain.     The  projections  or 

claws  are  on  the  ends  and  one 

inch  in  from  the  sides,  one  inch,  wide,  and  f  to  1}  inches 
long,  and  have  a  sharp  cutting  edge. 

It  is  essential  at  the  present  time  to  double  spike  all 
curves,  particularly  where  electric  motors  with  long 
rigid  bases  are  used.  In  several  serious  accidents  that 
have  occurred  recently  the  spikes  and  rail  fastenings 


52 


RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


were  sheared  off.  It  is  customary  on  some  railroads 
to  use  a  tie  plate  of  the  Goldie  type  on  curves,  but 
with  four  spikes,  two  on  each  side  of  the  rail,  and 
in  some  cases  without  the  projections  for  holding  to 
the  tie. 

As  mentioned  above,  there  are  a  number  of  other 
patented  tie  plates,  but  the  two  forms  given  show  the 
essential  points  of  each.  Tie  plates  are  made  of  rolled 
steel,  are  from  ^  to  f  inch  in  thickness,  and  were 
formerly  5  by  8  or  6  by  8  inches,  the  greater  dimension 

being  at  right  angles  to 
the  rail;  but  in  the  latest 
practice  larger  tie  plates 
are  used.  The  Pennsyl- 
vania Railroad  uses  seve- 
ral standard  forms  of  tie 
plates,  the  largest  being 
6  by  9  by  -|-f  inches  for 


4T         •£       <k-t=*l 

T  '             T  ' 

V 

P             ± 

<  11-  » 

D 

c 

%' 

n^ 

n 

P.R.R.  JOINT  TIE  PLATE 

pIG  20.  intermediate    ties    and    6 

by    11   by  |-f    inches   for 

joints.  The  dimensions  for  ,the  joint  tie  plate  are 
shown  in  Fig.  20,  for  100  pound  rails.  These  plates 
weigh  about  14  pounds  per  pair.  The  holes  are  -J  by  £ 
inch,  which  allows  enough  play  for  the  spike  so  that  the 
track  can  be  spiked  to  true  gauge. 

63.  Annual  Cost  of  Tie  Plates*— Using  formula 
(3),  If  49,  and  assuming  the  annual  rate  of  interest  to  be 
5  per  cent.,  and  that  tie  plates  will  last  thirty  years,  the 
following  table  gives  the  annual  cost  of  a  pair  of  tie 
plates : 


PERMANENT   WAY.  53 

TABLE  XI. 

n  =  Thirty  Years. 

Cost  of  two  tie  plates $0.50  $0.60  $0.70 

Annual  interest 025  .030  .035 

Annual  depreciation 008  .009  .011 

Annual  cost 033  .039  .046 

64.  Examples  in  Economy  of  Using  Tie  Plates.— 

(a)  If  an  untreated  tie  costs  $0.60  and  lasts  six  years, 
what  is  the  economy  of  treating  it  at  a  cost  of  $0.30  and 
using  tie  plates  at  $0.50  per  pair,  if  the  tie  will  then  last 
ten  years  ? 

From  ^f  50,  annual  cost  of  untreated  tie $0.118 

"      If  51,         "         "     "treated  tie $0.116 

"      If  63,         "         "     "  tie  plates 0.033        0.149 


This  would  not  be  economical  by  an  annual  cost  of ...  $0.031 

(b)  If  an  untreated  tie  costs  $1.00  and  lasts  six  years, 
what  is  the  economy  of  treating  it  at  a  cost  of  $0.30  and 
using  tie  plates  at  $0.50  per  pair,  if  the  tie  will  then  last 
ten  years  ? 

Annual  cost  of  untreated  tie $0.197 

"     "  treated  tie $0.168 

"     "tie  plates 0.033        0.201 


This  would  not  be  economical  by  an  annual  cost  of  ...  $0.004 


ARTICLE  IV. 
RAILROAD  RAILS. 

65.  Development  of  Railroad  Rails. — The  first 
trams  or  wagons  used  on  railroads  had  flat,  or  flange- 
less,  tires.  The  first  form  of  iron  rails  for  flangeless 


54 


RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


wheels  consisted  of  plates  of  cast-iron  fastened  to  longi- 
tudinal stringers  (Fig.  21),  the  plates  being  used  to  give 
a  better  wearing  surface  and  less  tractive  resistance,  and 
were  three  feet  long. 

In  order  to  keep  the  flangeless  wheels  on  the  rails, 
angle  rails  (Fig.  22)  were  used.  These  rails  were  made 
of  cast-iron  in  three-foot  lengths,  and  were  supported  on 
stone  blocks,  the  vertical  flange  being  placed  on  the  out- 
side, the  wheels  running  on  the  horizontal  inner  flange. 
These  rails  were  in  use  as  early  as  the  year  1800.  By 
the  time  of  the  introduction  of  the  steam  locomotive, 
1825,  flanged  wheels  were  in  use,  and  the  rails  had  to  be 


%$fffaA  _ 


FIG.  21. 


FIG.  22. 


FIG.  23. 


modified  accordingly.  The  arrangement  of  the  plates 
in  Fig.  21  was  modified  as  in  Fig.  23,  and  the  angle  rail 
in  Fig.  22  was  arranged  so  that  the  wheels  ran  on  the 
top  of  the  vertical  flange.  Angle  rails  were  in  use  as 
late  as  1837  on  the  Albany  and  Schenectady  Railway. 

66.  Bridge  Rails. — The  term  bridge  rail  is  used  to 
distinguish  rails  that  rest  upon  supports  placed  at  in- 
tervals from  rails  resting  upon  longitudinal  stringers. 
This  distinction  has  no  significance  now,  as  all  rails  are 
bridge  rails,  but  in  the  early  days  of  rail  design  it  was  of 
vital  importance.  One  of  the  first  attempts  to  do  away 
with  the  continuous,  or  stringer,  support  is  shown  in  the 


PERMANENT   WAY.  55 

rail  in  Fig.  22  and  described  above.  The  first  attempt 
to  design  a  bridge  rail  resulted  in  the  "  fish-belly"  rail 
shown  in  Fig.  24;  it  was  made  of  cast-iron  in  three-foot 
lengths,  the  rails  being  fastened  in  chairs  which  were 
fastened  to  and  supported  by  stone  blocks.  Its  name 
was  derived  from  its  shape,  the  belly  being  designed  to 
put  the  additional  metal  where  it  was  most  needed. 
The  fish-belly  rail  was  invented  before  the  steam  loco- 
motive came  into  use,  and  in  1820,  in  England,  a  process 
was  invented  by  which  the  fish-belly  rail  could  be  rolled 
from  wrought-iron  in  lengths  of  15  to  18  feet.  Until 
1850  the  flat  wrought-iron  strap  spiked  to  longitudinal 
wood  or  stone  stringers,  the  stringers  resting  on  widely 


FIG.  24. 

spaced  cross-ties,  was  used  extensively  in  the  United 
States,  as  the  flat  straps  were  the  only  form  that  could 
be  rolled  here.  A  number  of  other  forms  of  rail  were 
used  here,  but  they  were  imported  from  England. 

67.  Stevens  Rail. — The  first  form  of  the  present 
flange  rail,  or  T-rail,  section  was  invented  in  1830  by 
Col.  Robert  L.  Stevens,  chief  engineer  of  the  Camden 
and  Amboy  Railroad.  The  Stevens  rail  was  rolled  in 
different  forms:  the  form  shown  in  Fig.  25  was  used 
on  the  Boston  and  Albany  Railroad  and  other  roads; 
another  form,  shown  in  Fig.  27,  was  called  the  pear- 
shaped  rails,  and  was  used  extensively.  In  Fig.  28  is 
shown  the  section  of  one  of  the  old  pear-shaped  rails. 

The  Stevens  rail  necessitated  a  new  method  of  fasten- 


56 


RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


ing  the  rail  to  the  ties  and  a  new  means  of  joining  the 
rails  together,  and  Col.  Stevens,  about  the  same  date,  in- 
vented the  hook-headed  spike  and  the  flat  splice  bar, 
improved  forms  of  both  of  which  are  in  universal  use. 


FIG.  25. 


FIG.  26. 


FIG.  27. 


After  1830  many  forms  of  rails  were  invented,  nearly 
every  railroad  having  its  own  special  form.  In  1834, 
the  hollow  rail,  Fig.  26,  was  invented  and  used  to  some 
extent,  particularly  in  England.  The  first  form  of  the 


FIG.  28. 


hollow  rail  weighed  44  pounds  per  yard,  the  rail  being 
1}  inches  high,  and  was  fastened  to  the  supports  by 
screws,  the  head  of  the  inner  screw  being  countersunk. 
The  later  forms  of  this  rail  weighed  70  pounds  per  yard, 


PERMANENT   WAY.  57 

were  2J  inches  high,  and  were  screwed  to  longitudinal 
wooden  stringers  9  by  15  inches  in  cross-section,  the 
stringers  being  bolted  to  5  by  8  inch  cross-ties  at  in- 
tervals of  9  or  10  feet.* 

68.  Manufacture  of  Rails. — The  hollow  or  U- 
shaped  rail  was  first  rolled  in  this  country  in  1844,  and 
the  Stevens  rail  in  1845.  Wrought-iron  was  used  for 
rails  until  1855,  when  the  first  steel  rail  was  made  in 
England.  Ten  years  later,  1865,  steel  rails  were  rolled 
experimentally,  and  to  order  in  1867,  at  Johnstown,  Pa. 
The  introduction  of  the  Bessemer  process  of  making 
steel  marked  the  beginning  of  a  great  advance  in  the 
art  of  rail  manufacture,  the  great  reduction  in  cost  of 
steel  rails  made  by  the  Bessemer  process  causing  them 
to  come  into  general  use.  Up  to  1905  practically  all 
the  rails  in  use  in  the  United  States  were  Bessemer  rails, 
but  open-hearth  steel  rails  are  now  coming  into  use. 
Until  a  comparatively  recent  date  no  widespread  fault 
was  found  with  the  steel  rails  in  use.  Of  late  years  an 
increasing  number  of  accidents  have  been  attributed  to 
defective  rails,  and  a  much  greater  proportion  of  rails 
prove  defective  under  traffic.  Several  reasons  have 
been  advanced  in  explanation  of  the  defects,  the  only 
unanimous  verdict  being  that  the  rails  are  not  standing 
their  work  and  must  be  strengthened.  One  of  the  causes 
of  rail  failures  is  that  the  rolling  loads  and  speed  are  now 
greater  in  proportion  to  the  weight  of  the  rail  than 
they  were  formerly.  Some  engineers  blame  the  method 
of  manufacture,  claiming  that  formerly  rails  were  rolled 
at  a  lower  temperature  and  passed  through  the  rolls  a 

*  Roads  and  Railroads,  Gillespie,  1857. 


58  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

greater  number  of  times,  thus  giving  a  rail  better  en- 
abled to  withstand  work.  Others  claim  that  the  sec- 
tions now  rolled  are  of  such  size  and  shape  that  every 
particle  of  the  cross-section  does  not  receive  the  same 
amount  of  work  in  rolling;  and  there  is  also  a  differ- 
ence of  opinion  as  to  the  proper  chemical  composition 
of  rails. 

69.  Chemical  Composition  of  Steel  Rails. — There 
has  been  and  still  is  a  great  deal  of  discussion,  scientific 
investigation,  and  experiment  on  the  proper  chemical 
composition  of  railroad  rails.  The  main  element  govern- 
ing the  properties  of  steel  is  the  percentage  of  carbon,  and 
at  one  time  those  interested  were  divided  into  two  par- 
ties, one  advocating  carbon  as  low  as  0.20  per  cent.,  and 
the  other  as  high  as  0.60  per  cent.,  while  at  present  some 
of  the  specifications  call  for  carbon  as  high  as  0.80  per 
cent.  At  the  present  time  every  prominent  scientific 
society  interested  in  the  question,  the  manufacturers  of 
steel  rails,  and  many  of  the  railroads  have  corps  of  £x- 
perienced  men  working  on  the  problem  of  the  proper 
composition  of  steel  railroad  rails.  The  "  American 
Railway  Engineering  and  Maintenance  of  Way  Asso- 
ciation/' the  "  American  Society  for  Testing  Materials/7 
and  the  "  American  Society  of  Civil  Engineers"  each 
have  a  standing  committee  on  standard  specifications 
for  steel  rails,  and  in  April,  1908,  the  Pennsylvania 
Railroad  published  their  new  rail  sections  and  speci- 
fications, the  specifications  being  given  in  Table  XII. 

In  addition  to  carbon,  steel  rails  contain  manganese, 
silicon,  phosphorus,  and  sulphur.  The  amounts  of  these 
constituents  also  vary;  taking  all  the  specifications  to- 


UNIVERSITY 

Of 


PERMANENT   WAY. 


59 


gether,  the  lowest  and  highest  percentages  allowed  are 
as  follows :  manganese,  0.75  to  1.20;  silicon,  0.05  to  0.20; 
phosphorus,  0.03  to  0.10;  and  sulphur  shall  not  be 
greater  than  0.06. 


TABLE  XII. 


WEIGHT  OF  RAIL. 

POUNDS  PER  YARD. 

70  to  79 

80  to  89 

90  to  100 

Per  cent,  of  Carbon. 

A.  R.  E.  &  M.  W.  Assoc  

0.40-0.50 
0.50-0.60 

0.53-0.63 

0.43-0.53 
0.53-0.63 

0.58-0.68 
0.45-0.55 
0.70-0.80 

0.45-0.55 
0.55-0.65 

0.65-0.25 
0.45-0.55 
0.70-0.80 

Am.  Soc.  C.  E.  (for  Bessemer) 
Am.    Soc.    C.    E.(  for    Basic 
Open  Hearth)  

P.  R.  R.  (for  Bessemer)  
P.  R.  R.  (for  Open  Hearth).  .  . 

70.  Shape  of  Rail  Section. — When  the  Stevens  rail 
came  into  general  use,  nearly  every  railroad  had  its  own 
standard  shape,  as  well  as  each  manufacturer,  and  at  one 
time  the  rail  mills  had  188  different  patterns  which  were 
considered  standard,  and  119  patterns  and  27  different 
weights  per  yard  were  manufactured.  In  1874  Mr. 
Robert  H.  Sayre  invented  a  rail  section  quite  similar 
to  the  A.  S.  C.  E.  section  now  in  use,  the  principal  differ- 
ence being  that  the  Sayre  section  had  sloping  sides 
to  the  head.  The  great  number  of  different  patterns 
of  rails  in  use  became  so  inconvenient  that  in  1890 
the  American  Society  of  Civil  Engineers  appointed  a 
committee  of  thirteen  members  to  study  the  question 
of  rail  section.  In  1893  this  committee  reported  a  set 
of  standard  sections  for  rails  varying  in  weight  from 


60  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

40  to  100  pounds  per  yard.  This  report  was  adopted 
by  the  Society  and  recommended  to  the  railroad  com- 
panies, and  is  usually  referred  to  as  the  A.  S.  C.  E. 
section.  In  a  tabulation  of  reports  from  fifty-four  differ- 
ent railroad  companies  as  to  their  standards  ("  Engineer- 
ing News/'  Aug.  30,  19QO),  thirty-eight  railroads  use  the 
A.  S.  C.  E.  section,  three  use  the  Dudley  section,  and 
thirteen  use  special  sections,  and  probably  more  than 
75  per  cent,  of  the  rails  now  in  use  are  of  the  A.  S.  C.  E. 
section. 

In  1893,  when  the  above  report  was  made,  90  pounds 
per  yard  was  considered  a  very  heavy  rail,  and  there 
were  no  data  upon  which  to  base  the  design  of  the  heavier 
rails.  Rails  having  begun  to  prove  unsatisfactory  in  an 
increasing  ratio,  and  part  of  the  trouble  being  attrib- 
uted to  the  design,  in  1905  the  American  Society  of 
Civil  Engineers  appointed  another  committee  to  design 
a  new  set  of  standard  sections  to  conform  with  present 
requirements. 

71.  A.  S.  C.  E.  Rail  Sections. — The  durability  of  a 
railroad  rail  depends  upon  its  chemical  composition,  the 
amount  of  the  ingot  discarded,  the  method  of  manufac- 
ture, and  the  proportion  of  its  cross-section,  viz.,  its  wear- 
ing volume  or  size  of  head,  its  shape,  and  the  moment 
of  inertia  of  its  cross-section.  The  higher  the  rail,  the 
stiffer  it  is.  The  base  must  be  wide  enough  to  make  the 
rail  stand  up,  and  the  more  metal  in  the  head,  the  more 
can  be  worn  away  before  the  rail  is  unfit  for  service. 
The  A.  S.  C.  E.  sections  have  the  same  proportions  for  all 
weights  of  rail,  and  have  42  per  cent,  of  the  metal  in  the 
head,  21  per  cent,  in  the  web,  and  37  per  cent,  in  the 


PERMANENT  WAY. 


61 


flange,  or  base,  and  the  width  of  the  base  is  the  same 
as  the  height  of  the  rail. 

In  Fig.  29  is  shown  the  cross-section  of  the  A.  S.  C.  E. 
rail.  The  following  dimensions  are  constant  for  all 
weights  of  rail:  (1)  the  radius  of  the  top  of  the  head  and 
of  the  sides  of  the  web  is  12  inches;  (2)  the  slope  of  the 
bottom  of  the  head  and  the  top  of  the  base  is  13  degrees; 

(3)  the  radius  of  the  top  corners  of  the  head  is  -f$  inch ; 

(4)  the  radius  of  the  four  corners  of  the  web  is  J  inch; 


MM. 


FIG.  29. 


i  i 
1  i 

FIG.  30. 


(5)  the  lower  corners  of  the  head  and  the  four  corners 
of  the  base  are  rounded  off  with  a  radius  of  -^  inch. 

In  Fig.  30  is  shown  the  cross-section  of  the  P.  R.  R., 
1908,  rail.  The  broken  lines  in  the  left  side  of  Fig.  30 
show  the  A.  S.  C.  E.  section  and  indicate  the  differences 
between  the  two  sections. 

The  following  dimensions  vary  with  the  weight  of  the 
rail:  (A)  the  height;  (B)  the  width  of  the  base;  (C)  the 
width  of  the  head;  (D)  the  thickness  of  the  web;  (E) 
the  thickness  of  the  head  ;  (F)  the  height  of  the  web  ;  and 
(G)  the  thickness  of  the  base.  These  dimensions  are 


62 


RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


given  in  the  following  table  for  rails  weighing  from  60 
to  100  pounds  per  yard : 


TABLE  XIII. 


POUNDS 

PER 

YARD. 


100 
100* 

90 

85* 

80 

70 

60 

50 


Height 
of  Rail, 
Inches. 


Width 
of 


Inches. 


Width 
of  Head, 
Inches. 


Thick- 

ness of 

Web, 

Inches. 


Depth 
of  Head, 
Inches. 


Height 
of  Web, 
Inches. 


2M 

fg 


Thick- 
ness of 


Inches. 


72.  Relation  between  Weight  of  Engine  and 
Weight  of  Rails. — The  weight  of  rails  has  increased 
empirically,  but  for  a  long  time  there  was  a  striking 
coincidence  between  the  weight  of  the  locomotive  in 
tons  and  the  weight  of  the  rail  in  pounds  per  yard,  be- 
ginning with  a  50-ton  locomotive  on  a  50-pound  per  yard 
rail,  and  increasing  by  increments  of  ten  to  the  80-ton 
locomotive  on  an  80-pound  per  yard  rail;  but  in  recent 
years  the  weight  of  the  locomotive  has  increased  in  a 
much  faster  ratio,  which,  as  mentioned  before,  is  one 
of  the  reasons  why  the  composition  and  proportions 
of  the  rail  must  be  improved  unless  the  rail  is  made  so 
heavy  as  to  be  almost  prohibitive.  The  largest  loco- 
motive in  use  in  1905  weighed  167  tons,  exclusive  of  the 
*  P.  R.  R.,  -1908,  sections. 


PERMANENT  WAY.  63 

tender,  or  had  a  total  weight  of  167  tons  on  the  drivers, 
having  six  pairs  of  driving-wheels. 

Experiments  have  been  made  with  high-grade  steel 
in  the  endeavor  to  procure  a  longer  life  under  excessive 
use,  nickel-steel  rails  having  been  tried  in  at  least  one 
case,  but  sufficient  time  has  not  elapsed  to  prove  or  dis- 
prove the  economy  of  the  experiment.  In  the  summer 
of  1907  the  Bethlehem  Steel  Company  accepted  a  large 
contract  for  a  higher  grade  open-hearth  steel  rails  at  a  cost 
per  ton  greater  than  the  market  price  of  ordinary  steel 
rails  according  to  newspaper  reports. 

73.  Length  of  Rails. — After  various  shorter  lengths 
had  been  used,  a  standard  length  of  30  feet  was  adopted. 
In  an  endeavor  to  reduce  the  number  of  joints  and  pro- 
duce smoother  riding,  lengths  of  45  and  60  feet  were 
tried,  but  have  been  abandoned.     The  60-foot  rail  was 
hard  to  load  and  unload  and  difficult  for  the  track  layers 
to  handle;    it  was  also  difficult  to  transport,  as  it  re- 
quired two  cars  per  length  of  rail.     The  committee  of 
the  American  Society  of  Civil  Engineers,  about  the  same 
time  that  they  reported  the  standard  sections,  recom- 
mended a  length  of  33  feet,  which  is  rapidly  coming  into 
general  use.    The  clause  of  these  specifications  relating 
to  the  length  of  the  rail  is  as  follows:    "The  standard 
length  of  rails  shall  be  33  feet:"    "Ten  per  cent,  of  the 
entire  order  will  be  accepted  in  shorter  lengths,  varying 
by  even  feet  to  27  feet,  and  all  No.  1  rails  less  than  33 
feet  long  shall  be  painted  green  on  the  ends."    "A 
variation  of  J  inch  in  length  from  that  specified  will  be 
allowed." 

74.  Inspection  and  Tests   of  Rails.— In  addition 


Gl  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND  CONSTRUCTION. 

to  the  process  of  manufacture  and  the  chemical  composi- 
tion, the  majority  report  of  the  special  committee  of  the 
American  Society  of  Civil  Engineers  has  the  following 
clauses  in  its  specifications  for  steel  rails:  Drop  test, 
section,  weight,  length,  drilling,  straightening,  branding, 
and  inspection. 

The  following  quotations  from  the  1908  Pennsylvania 
Railroad*  specifications  represent  the  latest  practice: 
"Ingots  shall  be  kept  in  a  vertical  position  until  ready 
to  be  rolled,  or  until  the  metal  in  the  interior  has  had 
time  to  solidify";  "No  'bled'  ingots  shall  be  used"; 
"There  shall  be  sheared  from  the  end  of  the  bloom 
formed  from  the  top  of  the  ingot  sufficient  discard  to 
insure  sound  rails."  » 

75.  Drop  Test. — One  drop  test  shall  be  made  on  a 
piece  of  rail,  not  less  than  four  and  not  more  than  six 
feet  long,  selected  from  each  blow  of  steel.  The  test 
piece  shall  be  taken  from  the  top  of  the  ingot.  The  rails 
shall  be  placed  head  upward  on  the  supports,  and  the 
sections  shall  be  subjected  to  the  following  impact  tests 
under  a  free  falling  weight : 

70  to    79  pound  rails 18  feet. 

80  to    89       "        "     20    " 

90  to  100        "         "     22    " 

If  any  rail  breaks,  when  subjected  to  the  drop  test, 
two  additional  tests  may  be  made  of  other  rails  from  the 
same  blow  of  steel,  also  taken  from  the  top  of  the  ingots, 
and  if  either  of  these  latter  rails  fails,  all  the  rails  of  the 
blow  which  they  represent  will  be  rejected ;  but  if  both 
of  these  additional  test  pieces  meet  the  requirements, 
*  Railroad  Gazette,  April  17,  1908. 


PERMANENT  WAY.  65 

all  the  rails  of  the  blow  which  they  represent  will  be 
accepted. 

The  drop- test  machine,  Fig.  31,  shall  have  a  tup 
of  2000  pounds'  weight,  the  striking  face  of  which  shall 
have  a  radius  of  not  more  than  5  inches,  and  the  test 
rail  shall  be  placed  head  upward  on  solid  supports  3  feet 
apart.  The  anvil  block  shall  weigh  at  least  20,000 
pounds,  and  the  supports  shall  be  part  of,  or  firmly  se- 
cured to,  the  anvil.  The  re- 
port of  the  drop  test  shall  state 
the  atmospheric  temperature 
at  the  time  the  test  was  made. 

76.  Inspection  of  Section 
and  Weight. — Unless  other- 
wise specified,  the  section  of 
the  rail  shall  be  the  American 
Standard,  recommended  'by 
the  American  Society  of  Civil  ^ 
Engineers,  and  shall  conform, 
as  accurately  as  possible,  to 
the  templet  furnished  by  the  Fl«-  31. 

railroad  company,  consistent 

with  the  paragraph  relative  to  specified  weight.  A 
variation  in  height  of  ^T  inch  less,  or  -^  inch  greater, 
than  the  specified  height,  and  ^  inch  in  width  will  be 
permitted.  The  section  of  rail  shall  conform  to  the 
finishing  dimensions. 

The  weight  of  the  rails  will  be  maintained  as  nearly  as 

possible,  after  complying  with  the  preceding  paragraph, 

to  that  specified  in  contract.     A  variation  of  one-half 

of  1  per   cent,   for   an  entire   order  will  be   allowed. 

5 


66  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

Rails  will  be  accepted  and  paid  for  according  to  actual 
weights. 
For  length  see  1f  73. 

77.  Inspection  of   Drilling  and    Straightening.— 

Circular  holes  for  splice  bars  shall  be  drilled  in  accordance 
with  the  specifications  of  the  purchaser.  The  holes 
shall  conform  accurately  to  the  drawing  and  dimensions 
furnished  in  every  respect,  and  must  be  free  from  burrs. 

Care  must  be  taken  in  hot-straightening  the  rails, 
and  it  must  result  in  their  being  left  in  such  a  condition 
that  they  shall  not  vary  throughout  their  entire  length 
more  than  5  inches  from  a  straight  line  in  any  direction, 
when  delivered  to  the  cold-straightening  presses.  Those 
which  vary  beyond  that  amount,  or  have  short  kinks, 
shall  be  classed  as  second  quality  rails  and  be  so  stamped. 

Rails  shall  be  straight  in  line  and  surface  when  fin- 
ished— the  straightening  being  done  while  cold — smooth 
on  head,  sawed  square  at  ends,  variation  to  be  not  more 
than  -g^  inch,  and,  prior  to  shipment,  shall  have  the  burr 
occasioned  by  the  saw-cutting  removed,  and  the  ends 
made  clean.  No.  1  rails  shall  be  free  from  injurious 
defects  and  flaws  of  all  kinds. 

78.  No.  2  Rails. — No.  2  rails  shall  be  accepted  up 
to  5  per  cent,  of  the  whole  order.     They  shall  not  have 
flaws  in  their  heads  of  more  than  £  inch,  or  in  the  flange 
of  more  than  i  inch  in  depth,  and,  in  the  judgment  of 
the  inspector,  these  shall  not  be  so  numerous  or  of  such 
a  character  as  to  render  them  unfit  for  recognized  second- 
quality  rail  uses.    The  ends  of  No.  2  rails  shall  be  painted 
white,  and  shall  have  two  prick-punch  marks  on  the  side 
of  the  web  near  the  heat  number  brand,  and  placed  so  as 


PERMANENT  WAY.  67 

not  to  be  covered  by  the  splice-bars.  Rails  from  heats 
which  fail  under  the  drop-hammer  test  shall  not  be 
accepted  as  No.  2  rails. 

79.  Branding. — The  name  of  the  maker,  the  weight 
of  the  rail,  and  the  month  and  year  of  manufacture  shall 
be  rolled  in  raised  letters  on  the  side  of  the  web ;  and  the 
number  of  the  blow  shall  be  plainly  stamped  on  each 
rail,  where  it  will  not  subsequently  be  covered  by  the 
splice-bars. 

80.  Privileges  of  Inspectors. — The   inspector  rep- 
resenting the  purchaser  shall  have  free  entry   to  the 
works  of  the  manufacturer  at  all  times  when  the  contract 
is  being  filled,  and  shall  have  all  reasonable  facilities 
afforded  him  by  the  manufacturer  to  satisfy  him  that  the 
finished  material  is  furnished  in  accordance  with  the  terms 
of  these  specifications.     All  tests  and  inspection  shall  be 
made  at  the  place  of  manufacture  prior  to  shipment. 

The  manufacturer  shall  furnish  the  inspector,  daily, 
with  carbon  determinations  for  each  blow,  and  a  com- 
plete chemical  analysis  every  twenty-four  hours,  repre- 
senting the  average  of  the  other  elements  contained  in 
the  steel,  for  each  day  and  night  turn.  These  analyses 
shall  be  made  on  drillings  taken  from  small  test  ingots. 

81 .  Life  of  a  Rail. — Rails  wear  out  much  more  rapidly 
on  curves   than  on   tangents;    the  sharper   the  curve, 
the  quicker  it   wears  out.     On  account  of   the  great 
variation  in  the  amount  and  class  of  traffic  that  passes 
over  different  roads,  the  length  of  time  a  rail  lasts  con- 
veys very  little  idea  of  the  actual  service  it  has  given. 
Twenty  years  on  a  light  traffic  road  would  not  be  equiv- 
alent to  five  years  on  a  road  with  heavy  traffic.     It  is 


68  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

more  logical  to  estimate  the  life  of  a  rail  in  terms  of 
millions  of  tons  of  traffic  passing  over  it.  In  England  one 
set  of  data  showed  a  life  of  17 J  millions  of  tons.  For 
the  above  reasons  it  is  practically  impossible  for  a  manu- 
facturer to  guarantee  the  life  of  a  rail.  In  some  instances 
it  is  less  than  the  life  of  the  tie,  possibly  lasting  only 
four  or  five  years,  and  replacing  the  rail  also  shortens 
the  life  of  the  tie,  owing  to  the  injury  caused  by  the 
additional  spiking. 


ARTICLE  V. 
RAIL  JOINTS. 

82.  Definition  of  Rail  Joints. — The  rail  joint  has 
been  the  subject  of  more  thought  and  discussion  on  the 
part  of  railroad  men,  and  more  has  been  written  on.  the 
subject  than  in  almost  any  other  part  of  railroad  track. 
The  ideal  joint  is  one  that  will  make  the  rails  act  the 
same  as  if  it  were  one  continuous  rail.  Many  devices 
have  been  patented  and  experiments  made  in  the  en- 
deavor to  accomplish  this,  but  the  rail  joint  still  remains 
weaker  than  the  rail.  This  is  shown  by  the  fact  that 
the  ties  near  the  joint  require  more  tamping  to  keep  them 
in  surface  than  the  ties  near  the  center  of  the  rail.  With 
new  rails  and  splice-bars  fitted  and  screwed  up  properly, 
for  a  time  there  will  be  little  or  no  give  to  the  joint,  but 
under  the  continued  hammering  of  heavy  traffic,  even 
with  the  greatest  care  and  attention,  the  parts  will 


PERMANENT  WAY. 


69 


|O       O 


"oT 


move  and  wear  against  each  other,  and  the  joint  will 
gradually  weaken. 

Strictly  speaking,  the  term  rail  joint  refers  solely  to  the 
ends  of  the  rails,  but  the  general  use  of  the  term  means 
everything  that  helps  to  connect  the  rails,  Fig.  32, 
the  shape  of  ends  of  rails,  splice-bars,  bolts,  nut  locks, 
manner  of  resting  on  the 
ties,  and  the  position  of 
the  joint  in  the  track. 

83.  Shape    of    Ends    of 
Rails.— The    A.    S.    C.    E. 

specifications  require  the  ends  to  be  sawed  off  square,  and 
this  is  the  form  used  in  the  United  States.  On  account  of 
the  space  that  must  be  left  between  the  ends  of  the  rails 
to  provide  for  expansion,  a  blow  is  struck  by  each  wheel 
as  it  leaves  the  end  of  one  rail  and  strikes  the  end  of  the 
adjacent  rail.  The  bad  effects  of  this  space  and  the  accom- 
panying damage  have  been  greatly  exaggerated  in  the 


FIG.  32. 


FIG.  33. 

past  and  have  led  to  the  trial  of  a  number  of  especially 
formed  ends  to  obviate  the  defect.  In  the  United  States 
the  miter,  or  Sayre  joint,  Fig.  33,  has  been  used  on  the 
Lehigh  Valley  Railroad,  and  can  still  be  seen  in  some 
of  the  old  rails.  There  were  several  objections  to  this 
joint.  Owing  to  excessive  heat  or  the  creeping  of  the 
rails,  the  ends  of  the  rails  are  liable  to  push  past  each 


70  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND  CONSTRUCTION. 

other  sufficiently  to  be  damaged  by  the  wheel  flanges, 
even  if  not  far  enough  to  cause  a  derailment  by  the  wheel 
flanges  striking  the  projection  and  mounting  the  rail. 
It  was  very  difficult  to  cut  the  rail  in  laying  switches  or 
in  replacing  a  length  of  rail  other  than  the  standard 
length.  The  lap  joint  shown  in 
Fig.  34  was  tried  in  Europe,  and 
in  at  least  one  case  proved  a  fail- 


m 


FIG.' 34.  ure-     The  argument  in  favor  of 

these  joints  was  that  the  wheel 

would  rest  on  the  second  rail  before  it  had  entirely  left  the 
first  rail,  thus  preventing  the  blow  due  to  the  square 
rail  ends.  If  the  space  between  the  ends  of  the  rails  is 
made  as  small  as  possible  and  the  joint  is  strong  and  the 


FIG.  35. 

rails  are  of  good  quality,  practically  no  damage  is  done 
to  the  head  of  the  rail,  the  main  disadvantage  being, 
as  stated  above,  that  the  ties  under  the  joint  need  more 
tamping  and  the  joint  must  be  kept  screwed  tight. 


FIG.  36. 


84.  Square  and  Broken  Joints. — All  rail  joints  are 
divided  into  two  general  classes,  i.  e.,  square  joints,  Fig. 
36,  and  broken  joints,  Fig.  35.  Both  methods  are  used. 


PERMANENT  WAY.  71 

There  is  considerable  difference  of  opinion  as  to  which 
is  better,  or  which  makes  the  train  ride  easier,  but  broken 
joints  are  in  most  general  use.  Square  joints  can  not  be 
held  to  strictly  with  rails  of  uniform  length  if  there  are 
curves  in  the  track.  On  a  sharp  curve  or  a  long  light  curve, 
the  outer  rail  of  the  track  is  longer,  and  if  square  joints 
are  used  on  the  tangent,  the  joints  will  be  broken  before 
much  of  the  curve  has  been  laid.  If  broken  joints  are 
used  on  tangent,  there  will  be  points  where  the  joints 
come  square  on  a  curve.  The  argument  against  broken 
joints  is  that  a  wheel  causes  the  rail  to  sink  at  a  joint  more 
than  the  opposite  wheel  on  the  middle  of  its  rail,  thus 
causing  the  train  to  sway  sideways. 


o  o  o  o 


FIG.  37. 

85.  Suspended   and   Supported   Joints.— There   is 

considerable  difference  of  opinion  and  discussion  of  the 
question  of  suspended  vs.  supported  joints.  A  sus- 
pended joint  is  shown  in  Fig.  32,  in  which  the  ties  are 
placed  a  little  less  than  the  regular  spacing  apart,  so 
that  there  is  a  tie  under  each  end  of  the  splice-bar.  A 
supported  joint  is  shown  in  Fig.  37,  in  which  one  tie 
comes  directly  under  the  ends  of  the  rails,  and  the  space 
between  this  tie  and  the  tie  next  to  it  on  each  side  is 
considerably  less  than  the  regular  spacing,  and  the  splice- 
bars  have  less  bearing  on  the  outside  ties.  The  objection 
to  supported  joint  is  that  the  middle  tie  does  part  of  the 
work  of  the  joint,  and  the  work  that  comes  on  the  middle 


72  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

tie  is  so  much  more  than  comes  on  the  other  ties,  par- 
ticularly when  a  weaker  joint  is  used,  that  it  is  difficult 
to  keep  it  in  surface.  The  middle  tie  prevents  the  use 
of  many  of  the  stronger  forms  of  splice-bars.  Most  of  the 
joints  in  use  are  suspended  joints. 

86.  Bonded  and  Insulated  Joints. — Rail  joints  are 
further  divided  into  bonded  and  insulated  joints.  This 
is  necessary  in  connection  with  electric  automatic 
signals.  If  a  joint  could  be  kept  tight  and  free  from 
rust,  probably  no  other  form  of  bond  would  be  necessary; 
but  this  is  too  uncertain,  and  in  order  to  provide  a  good 
bond,  various  means  are  used.  One  of  the  most  common 
methods  of  bonding  the  rails  is  shown  in  Fig.  38,  holes 

( (i i  being  drilled  in  the  rails  just 

beyond  the  ends  of  the  splice- 
bars  and  copper  wires  at- 
FlG  3g  tt  tached  by  means  of  copper 

plugs.  One  or  two  wires  are 

used,  both  wires  being  outside  of  the  splice-bar,  or  One 
outside  and  one  between  the  splice-bar  and  the  rail,  as 
shown  in  the  figure. 

An  insulated  joint  is  so  designed  that  there  is  no 
chance  for  the  electric  current  to  pass  the  joint.  Op- 
posite joints  on  the  two  rails  of  the  track  are  insulated, 
and  the  rails  are  bonded  by  copper  wires  across  the  track 
in  the  same  general  manner  as  shown  in  Fig.  38,  thus  com- 
pleting a  circuit.  The  regular  joint  splice  cannot  be 
insulated  and  a  special  splice  is  always  used.  An  in- 
sulated joint  in  common  use  is  shown  in  Fig.  39.  It 
consists  of  a  channel-shaped  piece  of  rolled  steel  with 
unequal  legs,  abed,  with  bolt  holes  spaced  the  same 


PERMANENT   WAY. 


73 


distance  apart  as  in  the  ordinary  splice-bars,  and  is  also 
the  same  length  as  the  ordinary  joint.  A  non-conductor, 
such  as  rubber,  is  placed  between  the  ends  of  the  rails 
at  e,  between  the  wooden,  blocks  and  the  channel,  be- 
tween the  blocks  and  the  rail,  between  the  base  of  the 
rail  and  the  channel,  and  also  around  the  bolt,  so  that 
the  bolt  cannot  touch  the  web  of  the  rail.  Wooden  blocks 


O      O     O    O     O      O 


FIG.  39. 

are  fitted  in  as  shown  in  the  figure,  and  all  are  bolted 
together.  By  this  means  the  rails  are  joined  together 
by  a  strong  splice  without  any  possibility  of  the  electric 
current  passing  from  one  rail  to  the  next  one. 

Another  form  of  insulated  splice  in  common  use  is  shown 
(Fig.  40) .   It  consists  of  an  angle  iron  a  b  c  and  two  blocks 


0 

:  O 

o| 

O 

O 

10 

FIG.  40. 

of  wood  fitted  in  as  shown,  with  a  non-conductor  inside 
the  angle  iron  and  around  the  bolt.  The  inside  plate 
de  is  made  in  three  forms.  The  simplest  arrangement  is 
shown  in  the  first  sketch  of  Fig.  ,40,  and  consists  of  two 
pieces  of  rectangular  flat  steel  bar  with  a  space  of  about 
one-half  inch  between  the  ends  of  the  bars  at  the  center 
of  the  splice,  and  in  some  cases  an  angle  bar  is  cut  in  half 


74  RAILROAD    TRACK   AND    CONSTRUCTION. 

and  used  instead  of  the  plain  bars.  In  the  second  form 
one  rectangular  bar  extending  the  entire  length  of  the 
splice  is  used ;  and  in  the  third  form  an  ordinary  angle  bar 
is  used.  A  non-conductor  is  placed  between  the  ends 
of  the  rails  in  all  cases. 

87.  Splice-bars. — Most  of  the  attempts  to  strengthen 
the  rail  joint  have  been  along  the  line  of  strengthening 
the  splice-bars.  This  feature  of  the  rail  joint  has  passed 
through  four  stages,  as  follows :  First,  chairs  which  rested 
on  the  tie  and  into  which  the  rails  rested;  second,  fish 


FIG.  41. 

plates;  third,  angle  bars;  and  fourth,  bridge  joints.  This 
development  has  been  necessitated  by  the  increasing 
weight  of  locomotives  and  rolling  loads. 

In  Fig.  41  is  shown  a  piece  of  one  of  the  earliest  forms 
of  the  pear-shaped  rail  with  its  chair.  The  weakness  of 
this  form  of  joint  is  shown  by  the  condition  of  the  end 
of  the  rail,  particularly  of  the  head  of  the  rail. 

The  first  form  of  fish  plate  is  shown  in  Fig.  42a,  and 
consisted  of  a  rectangular  strap  of  wrought-iron  with  four 
holes  in  it;  practically  all  the  strength  of  the  joint  de- 
pended upon  the  bolts.  The  rectangular  strap  was 


PERMANENT  WAY. 


75 


followed  by  the  splice-bars  shown  in  Fig.  426,  the  top 
and  bottom  edges  of  which  fitted  against  the  bottom 
of  the  head  and  the  top  of  the  base  of  the  rail  respectively, 
and  the  center  of  the  bar  curved  away  from  the  web  of 


FIG.  420. 


the  rail,  which  gave  the  bolt  a  better  chance  to  hold  the 
bars  firmly.  In  this  form  the  splice-bars  bore  most  of 
the  stress  in  the  joint,  the  bolts  simply  holding  the  parts 
of  the  joint  firmly  together. 


II 

Oi 

>o 

O 

o| 

FIG.  426. 


Under  increasing  loads  the  last-mentioned  form  of 
splice-bar  proved  too  weak,  and  angle  splice-bars  were 
invented  and  are  now  in  use  on  most  of  the  railroad 
track  in  the  United  States. 


000000 


FIG.  43. 

There  are  a  number  of  forms  of  the  angle  splice-bar, 
the  principal  variation  being  in  the  length  and  shape 
of  the  lower  leg  of  the  angle  at  a,  Fig.  43,  some  reaching 
only  as  far  as  the  edge  of  the  base  of  the  rail  and  others 
as  shown  in  the  figure.  At  the  same  time  that  angle 


76  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND  CONSTRUCTION. 

splice-bars  came  into  use  a  change  was  made  from  four 
bolts  to  six  bolts  per  joint. 

88.  Bridge  Joints. — Any  form  of  angle  bar  joint 
in  which  the  angle  bar  projects  below  the  base  of  the 
rail  may  be  called  a  bridge  joint.  Many  forms  of  bridge 
joints  have  been  invented,  the  one  in  most  general  use 
being  the  Bonzano  joint,  which  is  shown  in  Fig.  44. 
The  lower  leg  of  the  angle  bar  is  horizontal  over  the  ties 
and  is  bent  into  a  vertical  position  between  the  ties, 
as  shown  by  the  broken  lines  in  Fig.  44.  While  the 
amount  of  metal  in  the  Bonzano  splice-bars  is  the  same 
as  in  ordinary  angle  splice-bars  of  the  same  dimensions, 


o 

o 

o  o 

o 

0 

^  ^ 

FIG.  44. 

bending  the  flanges  down  distributes  the  metal  at  the 
middle  of  the  joint  so  that  the  moment  of  inertia  of  the 
cross-section  of  the  joint  is  greater  and  adds  considerably 
to  the  strength  and  stiffness  of  the  joint. 

The  "M.  W.  100  per  cent,  splice"  was  invented  by  an 
engineer  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad,  and  derives  its 
name  from  having  been  designed  to  give  the  same  strength 
and  stiffness  as  would  be  given  by  a  continuous  rail,  or 
an  efficiency  of  100  per  cent.  The  elevation,  plan,  and 
a  section  of  this  splice  are  shown  in  Fig.  45.  The  ends 
of  this  splice  are  shaped  as  shown  by  the  shaded  portions 
in  the  section  A  B,  which  corresponds  to  the  splice  shown 
in  Fig.  43,  without  the  horizontal  projections  a  on  the 


PERMANENT  WAY. 


77 


angle  bars;  the  middle  third  of  the  splice  is  the  same  as 
the  ends  with  the  legs  projecting  diagonally  downward 
in  addition.  The  plan  in  Fig.  45  shows  only  the  general 
outlines  of  the  splice-bars,  no  attempt  being  made  to 


ELEVATION 

II 

~S\  y''- 

u      h~ 

A) 

n  1 

n    h 

PLAN 

FIG.  45. 

B 

SECTION  A-B 


show  the  bolts,  etc.,  as  the  additional  lines  would  ob- 
scure the  principal  feature.  This  joint  is  much  stronger 
and  stiffer  than  the  joint  in  Fig.  44,  as  additional  metal  is 
added  at  the  center,  where  it  is  most  needed,  and  although 
the  lower  legs  of  the  splice-bars  are  shorter  near  the  ends 
of  the  bars,  they  are  proportionately 
strong  enough. 

89.  Continuous  Splice  and  Perma- 
nent Splice. — A  cross-section  of  the  con- 
tinuous splice  is  shown  in  Fig.  46,  the 
difference  between  this  form  and  the  ordinary  angle  bar 
splice  being  the  additional  horizontal  parts  which  grip 
the  base  of  the  rail. 

The  permanent  splice  is  shown  in  Fig.  47.     The  lower 
legs  of  the  angle  bars  are  beveled  so  that  they  fit  neatly 


FIG.  46. 


78 


RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


into  the  clamp  be  which  holds  the  joint  together  and  is 
as  long  as  the  clear  space  between  the  ties.  The  princi- 
pal feature  of  this  splice  is  that  no  bolts  are  used. 

There  are  many  special  forms  of  splices  besides  those 
described  in  this  article,  but  the  forms  described  illus- 
trate the  general  types  of  the  rail  joints,  or  splices,  used 
in  the  United  States. 


FIG.  47. 

90.  Splice  Bolts. — After  the  angle  bar  splice  came 
into  general  use  and  the  rail  was  made  heavier,  six  bolts 
were  used  in  a  splice  instead  of  four.  One  of  the  heaviest 
angle  bars  is  shown  in  Fig.  48,  the  six  bolts  being  spaced 
as  shown,  at  intervals  of  four,  five,  and  six  inches,  the 
total  length  of  the  splice  being  thirty  inches.  The  bolts 


30 


—-* — 8"— sr-^"* — 5"~± — 6"—^c" 
©        ©      ©       ©         © 


FIG.  48. 

near  the  center  of  the  splice  are  placed  closer  together, 
as  they  stand  a  greater  proportion  of  the  stress  in  the 
joint.  The  end  holes  in  the  splice-bar  are  drilled  at  a 
distance  of  two  inches  from  the  end  of  the  bar. 

There  is  not  a  great  amount  of  uniformity  hi  the  size 
and  shape  of  splice  bolts  used  by  different  railroads. 
In  general  they  vary  from  f  to  1  inch  in  diameter  and 


PERMANENT    WAY.  79 

from  4  to  5}  inches  in  length,  exclusive  of  the  head. 
There  is  also  no  uniformity  of  practice  in  proportioning  the 
diameter  of  the  bolt  to  the  weight  of  the  rail.  The  usual 
diameter  of  bolts  is  f,  f ,  or  1  inch,  but  some  railroads 
use  f  f  and  yf  of  an  inch.  The  length  of  the  bolt  depends 
upon  the  style  of  the  splice  weight  of  the  rail,  the  thick- 
ness of  the  nut  lock,  and  the  thickness  of  the  nut. 

In  Fig.  49  are  shown  three  views  of  a  standard  bolt 
and  two  views  of  the  nut  for  an  85-pound  rail  splice. 
The  oval  shoulder  of  the  bolt  corresponds  to  the  thickness 
of  the  splice-bar  and  fits  into  the  oval-shaped  hole  in  the 


splice-bar,  thus  preventing  the  bolt  from  turning  and 
thereby  loosening  the  nut.  The  holes  in  both  splice-bars 
are  made  oval  in  shape  and  T^-  inch  larger  than  the 
shoulder  of  the  bolt,  which  allows  the  bolts  to  be  put 
in  with  the  heads  facing  either  way.  There  is  a  differ- 
ence of  opinion  as  to  which  way  the  bolts  in  a  splice  should 
face.  Some  railroads  face  all  the  nuts  in  a  joint  toward 
the  center  of  the  track,  others  face  them  outward,  and 
some  face  half  of  them  outward  and  half  inward,  alter- 
nating them.  In  a  single-track  road  it  is  much  easier 
for  a  trackwalker  to  inspect  the  bolts  if  all  the  nuts  face 


80  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

inward,  but  the  objection  is  that  in  case  of  a  derailment 
a  wheel  might  shear  off  all  the  bolts  in  a  joint,  thus  adding 
to  the  chances  of  a  serious  accident.  For  this  reason 
some  railroads  face  half  of  the  bolts  in  a  splice  each 
way,  as  it  is  then  practically  impossible  to  shear  off  all 
the  bolts. 

91.  Nut-locks. — If  there  is  any  movement  to  the 
parts  connected  by  a  bolt,  there  is  a  tendency 
for  the  nut  to  work  loose.  There  is  a  decided 
movement  in  the  best  laid  and  maintained 
FIG.  50a.  track,  particularly  at  a  rail  splice,  conse- 
quently nut-locks  must  be  used  on  every  bolt. 
Nut-locks  are  of  various  forms;  the  simplest  and  the 
form  in  most  general  use  is  shown  in  Fig.  50a.  They 
are  made  of  spring-steel,  the  steel  being  rectangular 
in  cross-section  and  bent  into  a  circular  form  and  then 
hardened.  The  inside  diameter  is  made  large  enough 
to  slip  loosely  over  the  bolt,  and  the  cross-section  varies 
from  about  J  X  -f$  to  T3g-  X  -f$  of  an  inch,  the  greater 
dimension  being  at  right  angles  to 
the  bolt.  The  ends  are  cut  beveled, 
sharpened,  and  one  is  bent  upward 
and  the  other  downward,  thus  tend-  FIG.  506. 

ing  to  grip  both   the   nut   and    the 
splice-bar  and  to  prevent  both  the  nut  and  the  nut-lock 
from  turning. 

A  spring-nut  is  shown  in  Fig.  50&.  One  leg  of  this 
nut  is  too  long  to  allow  a  complete  turn  of  the  nut  to  be 
made,  consequently  the  nut  is  tightened  by  turning  the 
bolt  by  means  of  its  hexagonal  head. 

Numerous  other  forms  of  nut-locks  are  in  common 


PERMANENT  WAY.  81 

use,  a  common  form  being  similar  to  that  shown  in  Fig. 
50a,  except  that  it  is  «"  shaped  and  is  placed  on  two 
adjacent  bolts. 

92.  Bolt  Holes  in  Rails. — The  bolt  holes  in  rails  are 
drilled  J  of  an  inch  larger  than  the  diameter  of  the  bolt, 
being  1  inch  in  diameter  for  a  J-inch  bolt.  For  a  six- 
bolt  joint  the  holes  in  the  rails  are  spaced  as  shown  in 
Fig.  51,  the  end  hole  being  Iff  inches  from  the  end  of 
the  rail,  and  since  the  corresponding  holes  in  the  splice- 
bar  are  4  inches  apart,  the  space  between  the  ends  of  the 
rails  may  be  varied  so  that  the  proper  allowance  can  be 


FIG.  51. 

made  for  expansion  and  contraction  of  the  rail  due  to 
changes  of  temperature. 

93.  Expansion  Shims. — In  laying  rails  expansion 
shims  should  be  used  in  order  to  get  the  proper  distance 
between  the  ends  of  the  rails.  Shims  are  made  of  wood  or 
wrought-iron.  Wooden  shims  are  not  very  satisfactory 
on  account  of  being  crushed  if  the  rail  strikes  them  hard, 
which  destroys  the  shim  and  gives  irregular  spacing. 
In  using  wooden  shims  it  is  customary  to  have  strips  of 
wood,  about  like  a  lath,  hold  it  until  the  rail  is  pushed 
against  it,  and  then  break  it  off,  the  piece  of  wood  being 
allowed  to  remain. 

Wrought-iron  shims  are  made  in  sets  varying  in  thick- 
ness by  sixteenths  'from  -^  to  \  inch.  They  are  1 
shaped  and  their  thickness  is  plainly  marked  on  them. 


82  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND  CONSTRUCTION.    • 

When  laying  the  rails,  a  shim  of  proper  thickness  is  hung 
upon  the  head  of  the  rail  already  laid,  and  after  the  next 
rail  is  pushed  against  it  and  the  joint  screwed  up,  the 
shim  is  removed. 

94.  Space  between  Ends  of  Rails. — The  proper  dis- 
tance between  the  ends  of  the  rail  or  the  thickness  of  the 
shim  is  computed  in  the  following  manner:   A  33-foot 
rail  will  vary  in  length  per  degree  of  temperature  Fahr. 
0.0000065  X  33  X  12  =  0.0026  inches. 

If  the  temperature  of  the  rail  is  liable  to  vary  from  110° 

to  — 20°  F.,  and  the  track  is  being  laid  at  a  temperature 

of  70°  F.,  then  there  should  be  a  thickness  of  shim  of 

(110  —  70)  (0.0026)  =  0.104,  or  £  inch  approximately, 

and  the  joint  should  allow  a  maximum  range  of  move- 
ment of 

(110  +  20)  (0.0026)  =  0.33,  or  |  inch  approximately. 

The  play  of  \  inch  of  the  bolts  in  the  holes  and  the  -fa 
inch  between  the  ends  of  the  rails  provide  amply  for 
this  variation.  In  most  cases  the  temperature  of  rail  may 
be  taken  the  same  as  the  temperature  of  the  air,  but  it  is 
quite  easy  to  get  the  temperature  of  the  rail,  which  in 
many  cases  will  be  higher  than  that  of  the  air. 


PERMANENT  WAY.  83 

ARTICLE  VI. 
RAILROAD  SPIKES. 

95.  Railroad  Spikes. — The  functions  of  the  spike 
are — (1)  to  keep  the  rails  from  spreading,  and  (2)  to  hold 
the  rail  to  the  tie.  There  has  been  considerable  discus- 
sion as  to  which  of  these  two  functions  of  the  spike  is 
more  important.  In  this  country  the  ordinary  railroad 
spike,  called  the  common  spike,  or  simply  spike,  is  uni- 
versally used.  Any  one  who  watches  the  action  of  spikes 
in  the  track  will  soon  come  to  the  conclusion  that  the 
holding  of  the  rail  to  the  tie  cannot  be  of  vital  importance ; 
except  in  a  newly  spiked  and  well-ballasted  and  main- 
tained track,  it  will  be  found  that  most  of  the  spikes 
have  been  pulled  up  a  short  distance.  The  track  gang 
simply  keeps  driving  them  down  again.  A  certain 
amount  of  elasticity  is  necessary  in  a  track;  the  very 
best  track  will  give  an  appreciable  amount  under  the 
loads  passing  over  it,  and  a  small  movement  of  the  spike 
may  not,  under  all  circumstances,  be  a  serious  fault.  It 
must  be  kept  in  mind,  however,  that  most  of  the  conclu- 
sions have  been  drawn  for  hardwood  ties,  oak,  long-leaf 
yellow  pine,  or  chestnut.  As  the  hardwood  ties  become 
scarce  and  softer  woods  are  used,  it  will  be  necessary  to 
pay  more  attention  to  the  holding  force  of  spikes. 

A  well-designed  spike  should  give  a  maximum  holding 
lorce  with  a  minimum  injury  to  the  tie.  There  are  two 
general  forms  of  railroad  spikes,  viz.,  the  driven  spike 
and  the  screw  spike. 


84  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

96.  Common  and  Channeled  Spikes. — The  common 
spike  is  shown  in  Fig.  52a;  the  shape  of  the  head  is  an 
irregular  oval,  the  cross-section  of  the  main  part  of  the 
spike  is  3^-  or  |  of  an  inch  square,  the  clear  length  is  5, 
5J,  or  6  inches,  and  the  end  may  be  wedge-shaped, 
as  shown,  or  beveled,  as  shown  in  Fig.  53,  and  from  f 


FIG.  52o. 

to  If  inches  long.  The  angle  cba,  Fig.  52a,  which  the 
lower  face  of  the  head  of  the  spike  be  makes  with  the  hori- 
zontal (when  driven)  b  a,  must  be  the  same  as  the  slope  of 
the  base  of  the  rail,  thirteen  degrees,  so  that  there  will 
be  perfect  contact  between  the  spike  and  the  rail  when  the 
spike  is  driven  vertically.  The  general  custom  is  to  use 


5-inch  spikes  in  hard  wood  and  5^-inch  in  soft  wood 
when  tie  plates  are  not  used,  and  spikes  J  inch  longer 
when  tie  plates  are  used. 

The  channeled  spike  is  shown  in  Fig.  526,  the  only  differ- 
ence between  it  and  the  common  spike  being  in  the  size 
and  shape  of  the  cross-section,  the  open  side  of  the  channel 


PERMANENT  WAY.  85 

being  on  the  face  opposite  the  edge  of  the  rail.  A 
series  of  tests*  show  the  channeled  spike  to  have  about 
12  per  cent,  more  holding  force  than  the  common  spike. 

The  common  spike  is  heavier  than  the  channeled  spike, 
165  common  spikes  5|  inches  long  weighing  100  pounds, 
and  200  channeled  spikes  weighing  100  pounds. 

97.  Points  of  Spikes. — One  of  the  most  important 
things  in  a  spike  is  the  shape  of  its  point.  If  the  point 
is  too  blunt,  it  damages  the  tie  considerably  in  driving, 
the  fibers  of  the  wood  being  injured  for  quite  a  distance 
around  the  spike,  which  will  allow  moisture  to  enter  and 
cause  the  tie  to  decay.  On  the  other  hand,  if  the  point 
is  too  long,  while  there  is  less  injury  to  the  tie,  a  large 
portion  of  its  holding  force  is  lost.  The  point  of  the  spike 
must  be  symmetrical  in  order  to  insure  accurate  driving, 
otherwise  it  will  either  crowd  the  rail  out  of  true  gauge 
or  not  hold  firmly  against  the  rail,  which  will  allow  the 
wheels  to  crowd  the  rail  out  of  gauge. 

The  common  spike  has  a  simple  wedge-shaped  point, 
but  many  other  and  more  elaborately  shaped  points  have 
been  designed.  The  wedge-shaped  points  are  either 
rolled  or  cut  with  a  die .  •  When  cut  with  a  die,  the  point 
may  be  made  sharper,  but  the  edges  are  liable  to  be 
uneven,  which  tends  to  prevent  the  spike  from  driving 
true.  The  edges  of  a  rolled  spike  will  be  slightly  rounded, 
but  perfectly  uniform  in  shape. 

In  Fig.  53  is  shown  the  point  of  the  Goldie  spike,  the 

first  sketch  in  the  figure  showing  the  wearing  face,  or  the 

face  toward  the  rail,  and  the  second  sketch  shows  the 

side  view.     The  point  of  the  spike  is  1J  inches  long,  the 

*  Circular  46,  Forest  Service,  1900. 


86 


RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


lower  part  being  beveled  for  a  distance  of  f  of  an  inch 
as  shown,  making  a  sharp  point. 

In  Fig.  54  is  shown  the  standard  spike  of  the  N.  Y.  C. 
and  H.  R.  R.  R.,  for  Carolina  pine  ties.  It  is  quite 
similar  to  the  Goldie  spike,  the  proportions  being  differ- 
ent, the  main  point  being  longer  and  the  sharpened  part 
of  the  point  being  shorter. 

The  point  of  the  Pennsylvania  R.  R.  standard  spike 
is  shown  in  Fig.  55.  It  is  1|  inches  long  and  is  rolled. 


I 


FIG.  54. 


ViU 


FIG.  55. 


98.  Screw  Spikes. — Screw  spikes  have  been  used  only 
in  an  experimental^  way  in  this  country.  As  stated  in 
1J95,  common  spikes  will  be  gradually  pulled  up  a 
short  distance,  due  to  the  undulations  of  the  track  under 
wheel  loads.  This  is  not  serious  for  hardwood  ties,  but 
is  very  serious  for  soft-wood  ties.  In  soft  ties  the  spike 
not  only  pulls  out  easier,  but  it  works  loose,  destroying 
the  fibers  of  the  surrounding  wood  to  such  an  extent  that 
the  spike  will  no  longer  hold,  necessitating  the  driving 
of  an  additional  spike,  or  driving  the  old  spike  in  a  new 
place,  in  order  to  prevent  the  rails  from  spreading. 
In  addition  to  not  holding  the  rail  properly,  this  allows 
the  water  to  readily  enter  the  injured  fibers  of  the  wood, 
giving  a  much  greater  tendency  to  decay  the  tie. 


PERMANENT  WAY. 


87 


CJose  observation  of  a  passing  train  shows  that  there 
are  four  supports  which  undergo  depression,  viz.,  the 
rail,  the  tie,  the  ballast,  and  the  roadbed,  each  acting 
in  the  order  named.  The  movement  of  the  rail  is  much 
the  greatest,  and  that  of  the  tie  comes  next.  The  de- 
pression of  the  ballast  and  roadbed  is  felt  rather  than 
seen.  These  movements  prove  the  necessity  of  such 
a  fastening  for  the  rail  to  the  tie  as  will  allow  no  ob- 
struction to  the  wave  movement  of  rail  sufficient  to  lift 
the  tie  from  its  bed  in  the  ballast;  otherwise  were  the 
rail  and  tie  held  so  firmly  together  that  the  tie  would  work 
up  and  down  in  the  ballast  with  every  vertical  movement 


EIG.  56. 

of  the  rail,  this  would  disturb  and  in  some  kinds  of  ballast 
destroy  the  ballast,  and  would  result  in  what  is  commonly 
known  as  mud-pumping  ties.  This  tendency  of  the  spikes 
to  work  loose  has,  since  the  beginning  of  railroads,  in- 
spired men  to  invent  a  device  to  overcome  this  defect, 
and  has  led  to  the  recommendation  of  screw  spikes. 

Screw  spikes  have  taken  two  general  forms,  viz.,  a 
pointed  lag  screw,  and  a  blunt  screw  (Fig.  56).  In  cir- 
cular 46,  Forest  Service,  U.  S.  Department  of  Agricul- 
ture, are  given  the  results  of  a  number  of  experiments  on 
the  holding  force  of  railroad  spikes  in  wooden  ties.  The 
common,  channeled,  and  screw  spikes  were  driven  into 


88  RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

white  oak,  red  oak,  loblolly  pine,  hardy  catalpa,  common 
catalpa,  and  chestnut.  A  comparison  was  also  made 
on  the  relative  holding  force  of  clear  wood  and  knotty 
wood,  also  between  wood  steamed  at  various  pressures 
and  natural  wood;  the  latter  being  for  the  purpose  of 
showing  the  effect  of  tie  treatment  on  the  holding  force. 
The  results  show  that  the  screw  spike  has  in  some  cases 
from  two  to  three  times  the  holding  force  of  driven  spikes, 
except  in  loblolly  pine  they  were  equal.  Steaming 
does  not  affect  the  holding  force  seriously. 

Screw  spikes  are  screwed  into  a  hole  that  is  bored  with 
the  same  diameter  as  the  main  body  of  the  spike.  The 
spike  in  Fig.  56  would  require  a  hole  f  inch  in  diameter. 
This  method  was  used  in  the  above  tests.  The  above 
tests  are  interesting,  but  of  doubtful  utility.  If  the 
screw  spike  would  have  holding  force  enough  to  hold  the 
rail  firmly  to  the  tie  under  all  conditions,  it  would  be  of 
immense  advantage;  but  if  they  should  be  pulled  a  short 
distance,  just  enough  to  destroy  the  hold  of  the  threads 
of  the  screw,  the  result  would  be  far  worse  than  in  the 
case  of  the  driven  spike;  it  would  not  only  be  difficult  to 
make  the  screw  hold,  but  the  tie  would  be  injured  much 
more,  with  the  accompanying  tendency  to  decay.  The 
practical  way  to  make  a  test  of  this  kind  would  be  to  use 
the  screw  spikes  in  a  stretch  of  track  and  see  how  they 
worked.  The  Illinois  Central  screw  spikes  (Fig.  56) 
weigh  85  spikes  to  100  pounds. 

99.  Wear  of  Spikes. — In  addition  to  the  possibility 
of  the  spike  shearing  off  under  unusual  strain,  if  the  rail 
works  loose,  the  inner  face  of  the  spike  is  worn  away,  as 
shown  by  the  shaded  portion  of  Fig.  57.  To  counteract 


PERMANENT   WAY.  89 

this  decrease  of  cross-section  additional  metal  has  been 
placed  in  the  opposite  face  of  the  spike,  as  shown  by  the 
slanting  portion  a  b  of  the  same  figure.  This  additional 
metal  must  never  be  put  on  the  inner  face  of  the  spike, 
next  the  rail,  as  it  would  make  the  spike  difficult  to  drive 
properly.  It  is  very  important  that  a  spike  should  have 
this  additional  amount  of  metal  to  increase  the  strength 
against  shearing,  as  several  accidents  have  happened 
recently  in  which  the  spikes  were  sheared  off  for  several 
rail  lengths.  In  any  case  the  rails  will  spread  an  amount 
equal  to  the  depth  to  which  the  spike  is  worn. 


FIG.  57. 

100.  Common  vs.  Screw  Spikes. — Where  the  common 
spike  presents  a  square  surface  to  the  edge  of  the  rail 
and  the  fiber  of  the  tie,  the  screw  spike  presents  a  round 
surface,  which  makes  the  tendency  of  the  rails  to  spread 
greater  with  screw  spikes,  as  the  wear  will  be  greater  and 
the  lateral  pressure  on  the  rail  will  cause  a  greater  tendency 
to  crush  the  fibers  of  the  wood  and  allow  the  screw  spike 
to  move  laterally  in  the  tie.  This  difference  will  not 
be  so  noticeable  where  the  screw  spikes  are  shaped 
as  in  Fig.  56. 

The  lifting  of  the  tie  by  the  rail  will  in  some  cases  tear 
the  heads  off  the  screw  spikes  where  the  common  spike 
would  pull  out  a  short  distance;  therefore  the  common 
spike  is  better  adapted  to  the  wave  motions  of  the  track. 


90  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

Special  machines  are  necessary  to  insert  screw  spikes, 
making  them  both  more  costly  and  causing  more  delay 
than  the  common  spikes  in  track-laying. 

In  hardwood  ties  in  relaying  rail  and  regauging  track 
it  has  been  found  that  after  a  certain  time  the  thread 
of  the  screw  spike  united  with  the  fiber  of  the  wood  by 
rust,  and  that  the  head  of  the  screw  spike  will  twist  off 
before  the  screw  will  move,  which  requires  a  new  spike 
to  be  driven  in  another  place,  with  the  consequent 
damage  to  the  tie.  These  reasons  make  the  common 
spike  a  favorite  with  trackmen  and  maintenance-of- 
way  officials. 

101.  Rail  Braces. — Rail  braces  are  used  to  prevent 
the  outer  rail  on  a  curve  from  overturning  or  spreading. 
If  sound  ties  are  used  and  the  rail  is  double  spiked  or  the 
proper  form  of  tie  plate  is  used,  rail  braces  will  be  unnec- 
essary ;  but  if  there  are  no  tie  plates  and  the  spikes  begin 
to  hold  poorly,  rail  braces  must  be  used.  The  number 
of  braces  to  use  per  rail  length  will  depend  upon  the  degree 
of  curve  and  the  condition  of  the  ties.  If  the  curve 
is  sharper  than  a  six-degree  and  the  ties  are  poor,  it  may 
be  necessary  to  have  a  brace  on  every  tie,  and  almost 
certainly  there  should  be  a  brace  on  every  other  tie;  if 
the  ties  are  in  fair  condition,  three  or  four  braces  per  rail 
length  may  be  enough.  The  plainest  and  smallest  rail 
brace  for  an  intermediate  tie  is  shown  in  Fig.  58a,  and  is 
made  of  rolled  steel.  There  are  many  forms  of  rail 
braces,  most  of  them  being  larger  and  more  elaborate  in 
design  than  the  form  shown. 

In  the  elevation  Fig.  58a  the  surface  represented  by 
a  b  fits  against  the  lower  face  of  the  head  of  the  rail,  b  c 


PERMANENT  WAY. 


91 


against  the  web,  and  c  d  against  the  flange  of  the  rail. 
Rail  braces  are  used  on  the  main  rail  opposite  switch- 
point  rails,  in  which  case  they  are  shaped  as  in  Fig.  586, 


a   6 


END  VIEW 


PLAN 


FIG.  58a. 


FIG.  586. 


the  part  e  f  being  long  enough  to  be  spiked  at  the  end 
and  to  allow  the  switch-point  rail  to  slide  back  and  forth 
over  it. 


CHAPTER  III. 
TURNOUTS. 

I 

ARTICLE  VII. 
POINT  SWITCHES. 

102.  Definition  of  Point  Switch.— A  turnout  or 
switch  is  a  device  by  means  of  which  a  train  may  pass 
from  the  main  track  to  another  line  or  to  a  siding.  Fig. 
59  shows  the  outline  of  a  point  switch  which  is  open  for 
the  train  to  turn  off  of  the  main  track.  Fig.  60  shows 
the  outline  of  a  point  switch  in  which  the  main  line  is  in 
operation.  Except  in  case  of  absolute  necessity,  .the 
switch  is  always  placed  so  that  the  train  on  the  main  line 
runs  into  the  heel  of  the  switch  as  indicated  by  the  arrow 
in  Fig.  60.  With  the  best  of  care  it  is  difficult  to  keep 
the  point  of  the  switch  rails  a  and  a'  firmly  against  the 
rail,  and  if  it  should  become  battered  or  loose  and  a  train 
run  into  from  a  direction  opposite  that  indicated  by  the 
arrow,  there  would  be  grave  danger  of  a  derailment. 
The  above  discussion  holds  good  only  on  a  double-track 
railroad;  on  a  single  track,  of  course,  there  is  no  choice. 
If  the  switch  is  at  a  point  where  all  trains  run  slowly, 
then  running  into  the  point  of  a  switch  does  not  make 
much  difference. 

92 


TURNOUTS. 


93 


Switches  are  of  two  general  types:  viz.,  point  switches 
and  stub  switches.  A  point  switch  is  shown  in  Figs. 
59  and  60.  The  rail  C  C  is  continuous,  but  the  rail 


A  A  is  bent  at  a  so  that  it  becomes  part  of  the  turnout 
rail  A  a  B. 

103.  Stub  Switch. — The  stub  switch,  Fig.  61,  is  a 
crude  device  only  placed  in  sidings  that  turn  out  from 


FIG   60. 


a  siding  that  is  not  used  much.  Both  the  main  rails 
are  broken  and  the  parts  a  b  and  a'  V  of  the  main  rail 
are  not  spiked,  all  the  rest  being  spiked.  Fig.  61  shows 
the  switch  set  for  the  turnout;  when  set  for  the  main 


FIG.  61. 


line,  the  rails  a  b  and  a'  b'  are  pulled  over  into  the  position 
indicated  by  the  dotted  lines.  Formerly  the  stub  switch 
was  used  extensively,  but  now  it  can  be  found  only 
on  tracks  that  are  used  very  little. 


94  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

The  principal  objection  to  the  point  switch  is  that 
one  of  the  main  rails  is  broken.  A  number  of  devices 
have  been  patented  by  which  a  turnout  could  be  made 
without  breaking  either  main  rail,  but  no  device  has 
proved  successful  enough  to  replace  the  point  switch. 
The  Wharton  switch  carried  the  wheels  over  the  main 
rail  by  means  of  raised  inclined  planes,  and  was  exten- 
sively used  for  a  number  of  years,  but  it  proved  defective 
in  that  the  rails  forming  the  device  were  liable  to  turn 
over,  causing  considerable  extra  expense  in  maintenance. 

104.  Definitions. — In  Fig.  62  is  shown  a  circular  arc 
turnout  from  a  straight  track,  the  center  of  the  turnout 
curve  being  at  0. 

The  gauge  line  is  the  projection  of  the  inside  face  of 
the  head  of  the  rail,  the  rails  in  the  figure  being  repre- 
sented by  their  gauge  lines. 

The  gauge  of  track,  g,  is  the  distance  between  gauge  lines 
of  the  rails  of  a  track. 

The  point  of  switch  is  the  point  A,  also  C,  at  which  .the 
turnout  curve  begins  or  is  tangent  to  the  main  rail. 

The  lead,  1,  is  the  distance  A  B  from  the  point  of  switch 
to  the  point  of  frog. 

The  frog  distance  is  the  distance  C  B  from  the  point 
of  switch  on  the  outer  rail  to  the  point  of  frog. 

The  point  of  frog  is  at  the  intersection  of  the  guage 
lines  at  B. 

The  switch-point  rails,  or  switch  points,  S,  are  the  parts 
A  K  and  C  G. 

The  stub  lead  is  the  distance  B  H  from  the  heel  of  the 
switch  points  to  the  point  of  frog. 

The  throw  of  the  switch,  t,  is  the  distance  between 


TURNOUTS. 


95 


gauge  lines  at  the  heel  of  the  switch  points,  E  G  and 
HK. 

The  radius  of  the  turnout,  r,  is  the  radius  of  the  center 
line  of  the  turnout  track. 


The  frog  angle,  F,  is  the  angle  beiween  the  gauge  lines 
atB. 

The  frog  number  is  the  ratio  of  the  distance  B  P,  Fig.  63, 
to  the  distance  M  N,  B  P  being  the  distance  from  the 
point  of  frog  to  any  point  P,  and  M  N  being  the  distance 


FIG.  63. 

between  gauge  lines  measured  through  P  and  normal  to 
BP. 

105.  The  Lead  in  Terms  of  the  Gauge  and  Frog 
Angle. — In  Fig.  62  draw  the  radial  lines  0  C,  0  E, 
and  OB,  the  tangent  D  N  through  B,  and  the  line  C  P 


96  RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

through  B,  then  the  angles  COB  =  MBN  =  LDB  =  F, 
GB  D  ==  A  B  C  ==  1  F,  and  the  distance  C  D  =  D  B. 
From  the  triangle  A  B  C  we  have 

A  B  =  A  C  cot  A  B  C,  or 

1  =  g  cot  J  F  (5). 

106.  The  Lead  in  Terms  of  the  Gauge  and  Frog 
Number. — The  frog  is  an  arrangement  of  rails  placed 
at  B  whe're  the  gauge  lines  intersect  by  means  of  which  the 
flanges  of  the  wheels  may  cross  either  rail  at  that  point. 

In  Fig.  63  the  gauge  lines  are  shown;  the  line  B  P  is 
drawn  bisecting  the  frog  angle  M  B  N,  and  M  N  is 
drawn  normal  to  B  P,  then  from  the  triangle  M  B  P,  we 
have 

~Fw' 

or,  since  from  the  definition  of  frog  number, 
N  _  BP  _  d 

we  have 

cot  J  F  =  2  N  (6). 

Substituting  (6)  in  (5)  we  have 

1  =  2g  N  (7). 

107.  The  Radius  in  Terms  of  the  Lead  and  Frog 
Number.— From  the  triangle  A  0  B,  Fig.  62,  we  have 

OW  —  AO2  =  A~B2,  or 
(r  +  |g)2  —  (r  —  ig)2  =  I2,  or  2gr  =  R 

Substituting  (7)  in  the  last  expression,  we  have 
r  =  —  =  2g  N2,  or 
r  =  1  N.     (8) 


TURNOUTS.  97 

108.  Length  of  Switch  Points. — The  switch  points 
A  K  and  C  G,  Fig.  62,  will  not  be  equal  in  length  if  E  G 
and  H  K  are  on  the  same  radial  line,  nor  will  the  throw 
E  G  and  H  K  be  equal,  but  in  practice  A  K  is  made  equal 
to  C  G,  and  E  G  to  H  K.  If  the  length  of  the  switch 
point  is  made  equal  to  J  (A  K  +  C  G) ,  and  the  throw  to 
J(EG-fHK),  the  variation  from  the  theoretical  dis- 
tances will  not  be  appreciable.  In  practice  the  throw 
is  governed  by  the  weight  of  the  rail  which  governs  the 
width  of  the  base  of  the  rail,  If  71,  and  the  throw  is  made 
equal  to  the  width  of  the  base  of  the  rail  plus  one-half 
inch,  to  allow  the  ends  of  the  rails  to  be  spiked;  some 
railroads  specify  a  clear  space  of  three  inches  between 
the  gauge  of  the  main  rail  and  the  outside  of  the  head 
of  the  turnout  rail,  both  rules  being  practically  the  same. 
In  Fig.  62 

-,p_        CE2  CE2  . 

~  20G  +  EG  —  2(r+ig)  +  EG'  a 


neglecting  E  G  and  H  K  in  the  denominators  as  very 
small  compared  to  2r,  making  CE  =  C  G  =  A  H  =  AK 
=  S,  and  taking  the  mean, 

EG  +  HK        ,   /        S2  S2        \  4  r  S2 


t  = 


_  ,  /        S2 

~  *  V2(r  + 


2(r  —  *g)/        Sr2—  2g» 


and  neglecting  2g2  in  the  denominator  as  very  small 

compared  to  8r2, 

S2 

^=2?'°r 
S  =  i/2rt  =  2  N  i/gt  (9). 

109.  Turnout  Tables.— From  the  above  formulas, 

7 


98 


RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


assuming  the  throw  t  to  be  6J  inches  for  100  pound  A. 
S.  C.  E.  rails,  and  the  gauge  4  feet  8J  inches,  the  following 
table  has  been  computed  for  turnouts  from  a  straight 
track.  In  the  first  seven  columns  theoretical  values  are 
given.  The  lengths  of  the  switch  rails  in  column  eight 
are  assumed,  and  the  practical  leads  in  the  ninth  column 
are  the  sums  of  the  corresponding  quantities  in  the 
seventh  and  eighth  columns. 

TABLE  XIV. 


THEORETICAL. 

PRACTICAL. 

TURN- 

FROG 

FROG 

OUT 

DE- 

No. 

ANGLE. 

RADIUS, 
FEET. 

GREE. 

Lead, 
Feet. 

Switch 
Rail, 
Feet. 

Stub- 
lead, 
Feet. 

Switch 
Rail, 
Feet. 

Lead, 
Feet. 

4.  . 

14°  15' 

150.7 

38°  02' 

37.67 

t=6iin. 
12.53 

25.14 

10 

35.14 

5.. 

11°  25' 

235.4 

24°  21' 

47.08 

15.66 

31.42 

10 

41.42 

6.. 

9°  32' 

339.0 

16°  54' 

56.50 

18.79 

37.71 

10 

48.71 

7.. 

8°  10' 

461.4 

12°  26' 

65.92 

21.92 

44.00 

18 

62.00 

8.. 

7°  09' 

602.7 

9°  31' 

75.33 

25.05 

50.28 

18 

68.28 

9.. 

6°  22' 

762.7 

7°  31' 

84.75 

28.19 

56.56 

18 

74.56 

10.. 

5°  44' 

941.7 

6°  05' 

94.17 

31.32 

62.85 

18 

80.85 

11.. 

5°  12' 

1139.4 

5°  02' 

103.58 

34.30 

69.28 

30 

99.28 

12.. 

4°  46' 

1356.0 

4°  14' 

113.00 

37.58 

75.42 

30 

105.42 

15.  . 

3°  49' 

2118.7 

2°  42' 

141.25 

46.98 

94.27 

30 

124.27 

20.. 

2°  52' 

3766.6 

1°31' 

188.33 

62.64 

125.69 

30 

155.69 

24.. 

2°  23' 

5424.0 

1°03' 

226.00 

75.16 

150.84 

30 

180.84 

Railroads  have  at  least  four  different  frog  numbers 
as  standard;  for  example,  No.  6  for  crossovers  in  yards, 
No.  8  for  crossovers  on  main  track,  No.  12  for  a  turnout 
to  a  ladder  track,  and  No.  20  for  a  turnout  to  a  third 
track,  or  some  similar  combination.  This  requires  the 
storing  of  a  number  of  each  of  these  turnouts  at  each 
division  headquarters,  and  it  is  seen  that  by  using  the 
practical  lengths  of  switch  points  given  in  the  eighth 


TURNOUTS.  99 

column  of  the  above  table,  the  problem  of  keeping  a 
sufficient  stock  on  hand  is  greatly  simplified. 

The  formulas  used  in  computing  the  different  parts 
of  a  turnout  assume  that  the  turnout  between  the  point 
of  switch  and  the  frog  is  an  arc  of  a  circle.  This  is  never 
the  case,  both  on  account  of  the  short  switch  point  rail, 
and  both  gauge  lines  of  a  frog  being  made  straight,  so 
that  the  only  part  of  the  turnout  that  is  an  arc  of  a 
circle  is  between  the  heel  of  the  switch  and  the  toe  of  the 
frog. 

no.  Designing  a  Turnout. — In  designing  a  turnout  a 
frog  is  taken  with  a  number  corresponding  to  the  radius  of 
the  curve  required  by  the  general  conditions;  where  pos- 
sible, one  of  the  standard  frogs  in  stock  is  used.  Having 
assumed  the  frog  number,  the  lead  may  be  computed  by 
formula  (7)  or  taken  from  the  table,  and,  knowing  the 
size  of  the  rail  and  the  throw,  the  other  details  may  be 
computed  by  the  formulas.  As  shown  in  Table  XII, 
the  principal  variation  from  theoretical  lengths  is  in 
the  switch  point.  If  the  switch  point  were  designed  to 
give  the  exact  theoretical  lead,  it  would  have  a  sharp 
thin  point,  which  would  be  impracticable,  consequently 
even  when  a  standard  length  is  not  used,  it  is  made 
enough  shorter  to  give  it  the  necessary  thickness  at  the 
end  to  prevent  from  breaking  off  under  ordinary  wear, 
probably  at  least  three  inches  shorter  than  the  theoret- 
ical length. 

On  main  line  turnouts  the  longer  switch  points  are  used 
so  that  the  lead  will  be  as  near  the  theoretical  lead  as 
possible,  but  it  is  customary  to  use  a  short  point  on  side 
tracks  and  in  yards,  thus  giving  what  is  called  a  short 


100  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

lead.  For  example,  when  an  18-foot  point  would  be  used 
on  main  line  track  with  a  No.  8  frog,  a  10-foot  point 
would  be  used  with  a  No.  8  frog  in  yards,  in  which  case 
the  practical  lead  would  be  correspondingly  less. 

A  table  similar  to  Table  XII  should  be  computed  for 
each  value  of  the  throw  that  will  be  used,  and  the  lengths 
of  switch  points  should  be  made  to  correspond  to  the 
standards  of  the  railroad  in  question. 


ARTICLE  VIII. 
FROGS. 

in.  Rigid  or  Stiff  Frogs.— Frogs  are  of  two  general 
classes,  viz.,  rigid  frogs  and  spring  frogs.  Rigid  frogs 
are  'so  called  in  books  and  catalogs,  but  most  trackmen 
call  them  stiff  frogs.  Stiff  frogs  are  used  in  railroad 
crossings  and  turnouts  where  the  tracks  crossing  each 
other  are  used  equally,  the  speed  usually  being  reduced 
at  such  points.  There  are  a  number  of  forms  of  stiff 
frogs,  differing  in  the  manner  in  which  the  various  parts 
arc  fastened  together,  viz.,  riveted,  bolted,  and  yoked  or 
keyed.  All  frogs,  whether  stiff  or  spring,  are  made  of 
the  same  weight  rail  as  the  balance  of  the  track.  In  Fig. 
64  is  shown  a  bolted  frog.  It  is  formed  of  pieces  of  rail 
cut  and  shaped  to  the  proper  form,  held  apart  by  rolled 
steel  fillers,  and  firmly  bolted  together.  The  number  of 
bolts  depends  upon  the  number  of  the  frog  and  the  gen- 
eral design,  five  to  nine  bolts  1J  or  If  inches  in  diameter 


TURNOUTS. 


101 


being  used.  One  or  more  rivets  are  used  in  addition  to 
the  bolts,  the  rails  M  and  N  being  riveted  together,  one 
rivet  being  shown  in  Fig.  64,  and  two  other  rivets  near 
the  section  C  D  not  being  shown.  In  Figs.  65  and  66 
are  shown  two  sections  of  the  frog,  A  B  and  C  D  respec- 
tively. Bolted  frogs  have  the  advantage  that  damaged 


FIG.  64. 

parts  may  be  replaced,  but  the  parts  of  the  frog  are  more 
liable  to  work  loose  than  in  other  forms. 

Frogs  are  made  and  completed  in  the  shop  and 
are  delivered  ready  to  lay  in  the  track;  the  trackmen 
then  cut  the  track  at  the  proper  places  and  insert 
the  frog. 

112.  Yoked  Frogs. — Yoked  frogs  are  known  by  one 


SECTION,  A-B 

FIG.  65. 


SECTION    C-0 

FIG.  66. 


of  three  names,  viz.,  yoked,  clamped,  or  keyed  frogs. 
The  yoked  stiff  frog  is  similar  in  general  outline  to  the 
bolted  frog  in  Fig.  64,  but  instead  of  bolts  it  is  held  to- 
gether by  two  or  more  yokes,  or  clamps.  The  yokes  are 
made  with  a  clear  grip  x,  Fig.  67,  depending  upon  the 
weight  of  the  rail,  the  number  of  the  frog,  and  their  posi- 


102 


RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


tion  in  the  frog.  In  the  second  sketch  in  Fig.  67  is 
shown  the  section,  end-view,  and  dimensions  of  the  clamp 
or  yoke.  The  rails  are  placed  in  the  yokes  and  fastened 
by  means  of  steel  wedges.  In  a  frog  with  a  large  num- 
ber three  yokes  should  be  used,  taking  the  place  of  the 
three  sets  of  bolts  in  Fig.  64.  The  yokes  are  made  of 
wrought-iron  or  mild  steel.  Injured  parts  of  a  yoked 
frog  may  be  more  readily  replaced  than  in  a  bolted  frog, 
but  the  parts  are  more  liable  to  work  loose. 

113.  Riveted  Frogs. — All  frogs  of  the  same  number 
require  the  pieces  of  rail  to  have  practically  the  same 
size  and  shape.  Riveted  frogs  for  light  rails  and  light 


SECTION   A-B 


FIG.  67. 


traffic  are  formed  by  riveting  the  bases  of  the  rails  to  a 
large  plate  which  extends  under  the  greater  part  of  the 
frog.  The  plate  is  rectangular  in  shape  and  is  as  wide 
as  the  widest  part  of  the  frog.  No  frog  is  put  together 
for  heavy  rails  and  traffic  by  rivets  alone,  but  consists 
of  a  combination  of  the  bolted  frog  and  the  riveted  frog 
described  above,  and  is  made  by  riveting  a  bolted  frog 
to  a  rectangular  base  plate,  by  means  of  rivets  through 
the  flanges  of  the  rails.  These  are  called  bolted  plate 
frogs  and  are  used  under  very  heavy  traffic  where  the 
bolts  alone  would  not  be  strong  enough.  Bolted  plate 
frogs  last  much  longer  than  the  other  forms  under  the 


TURNOUTS.  103 

same  conditions,  but  must  be  sent  to  the  shop  to  be 
repaired. 

114.  Spring  Frogs. — In  stiff  frogs  there  is  a  break 
in  the  continuity  of  both  the  main  track  and  the  turnout 
rails  at  the  point  of  frog,  there  being  a  space  over  which 
the  wheels  must  pass,  the  wheels  being  supported  over 
this  opening  by  a  partial  bearing  on  the  wing  rails  of  the 
frog,  consequently  a  blow  is  struck  by  each  wheel  as  it 
passes  this  point.  These  blows  loosen  and  wear  out  the 
frog  rapidly,  besides  necessitating  a  slow  rate  of  speed. 
In  the  case  of  a  turnout  from  the  main  track  in  which 
the  main  track  is  used  considerably  more  than  the  turn- 
out, a  spring  frog  is  used,  the  spring  frog  giving  prac- 
tically a  continuous  rail  for  the  main  track. 

In  Fig.  68  is  shown  the  arrangement  of  the  rails  in  a 
spring  frog.  The  spring  in  the  case  S  holds  the  movable 
wing  rail  a  b  firmly  against  the  adjoining  part  of  the  frog 
so  that  the  main  rail  a  c  is  practically  unbroken.  When 
a  train  is  passing  from  the  turnout  to  the  main  track,  the 
wheel  flanges  enter  the  heel  of  the  frog  at  b  and  force  the 
wing  rail  over,  the  spring  not  being  stiff  enough  to  pre- 
vent this  action,  but  being  stiff  enough  to  force  the  wing 
rail  back  after  the  flanges  have  passed.  In  the  same 
manner  the  wing  rail  is  forced  over  when  a  train  enters 
the  turnout  from  the  main  track,  the  guard  rails  which 
are  always  placed  on  both  the  turnout  and  main  track 
opposite  the  frog  assisting  in  this  action.  A  spring  frog 
is  more  complicated  in  design  than  a  stiff  frog,  not  only 
on  account  of  the  movable  parts  and  the  spring,  but  also 
on  account  of  the  special  tie  plates  and  braces  necessary 
for  the  proper  working  of  the  frog. 


104  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


TURNOUTS.  105 

The  section  through  A  B  is  shown  in  Fig.  69a.  The 
fixed  wing  rail  d  e  is  bolted  to  the  frog  point  rails  through 
rolled  steel  fillers  shown  in  the  figure.  In  Figs.  69a  and 
696  is  shown  the  reinforcing  bar  which  is  riveted  to  the 
web  of  the  movable  wing  rail  a  b.  This  bar  is  not  shown 
in  Fig.  68,  as  the  additional  lines  necessary  to  show  it 
would  add  confusion  to  the  figure.  For  the  same  reason 
the  spikes,  the  bolts,  and  some  of  the  rivets  are  not 
shown. 

The  movable  wing  rail  a  b  slides  over  the  tie  plates 
and  is  braced  when  pushed  over  by  the  flanges  by 
the  braces  /  /  shown  in  Figs.  68  and  69c,  the  braces 
being  riveted  to  the  tie  plate  and  shaped  so  that 
they  fit  snugly  against  the  web  of  the  rail  or  the  re- 
inforcing bar.  The  wing  rail  is  further  controlled  by 
the  arm  g  which  is  riveted  to  the  rail  and  moves 
through  a  socket  riveted  to  the  tie  plate.  In  Fig.  69?; 
is  shown  a  section  through  C  D. 

115.  Crossing  Frogs. — Crossing  frogs  are  necessary 
where  two  tracks  cross  each  other  at  grade.  The  details 
of  the  design  of  crossing  frogs  depend  upon  the  amount  of 
traffic  and  the  crossing  angle.  A  sixty-degree  crossing 
frog  manufactured  by  the  Ramapo  Iron  Works  is  shown 
in  Fig.  70,  the  figure  representing  the  intersection  of  two 
rails,  four  of  these  frogs  being  necessary  for  the  inter- 
section of  two  single  tracks.  When  the  angle  is  greater 
than  the  angle  of  an  ordinary  turnout  frog  and  the  tracks 
are  used  equally,  stiff  frogs  are  used.  Crossing  frogs  are 
subject  to  all  the  objections  of  an  ordinary  stiff  frog, 
and  the  amount  of  pounding  that  they  receive  under 
heavy  traffic  makes  them  very  difficult  to  maintain,  and 


106 


RAILBOAD  TRACK  AND  CONSTRUCTION. 


one  year  is  a  long  life  for  them  even  when  made  of  the 
best  material  and  design. 

A  grade  track  crossing  is  one  of  the  weakest  spots  in  a 
railroad  on  account — (1)  of  the  interruption  of  traffic  of 
both  roads,  (2)  danger,  and  (3)  difficulty  of  main- 
tenance. In  many  instances  a  railroad  has  gone  to 
great  expense  and  inconvenience  to  eliminate  a  grade- 
crossing,  by  substituting  for  it  either  an  overhead  or 


FIG.  70. 


undergrade  crossing.  In  some  cases  a  grade-crossing 
is  absolutely  necessary  on  account  of  local  conditions, 
topographical  or  otherwise.  The  older  road  never 
allows  the  newer  road  to  cross  its  tracks  at  grade  until 
all  possible  expedients,  legal  and  .otherwise,  to  prevent  it, 
have  been  exhausted,  sometimes  to  the  extent  that  the 
authorities  are  called  upon  to  compel  the  contending 
forces  to  keep  the  peace. 


TURNOUTS.  107 

116.  Ordering  Crossing  Frogs. — Crossing  frogs  are 
ordered  either  from  the  shops  of  the  railroad  or  from 
firms  who  make  a  specialty  of  manufacturing  them,  and 
the  railroad  must  supply  the  following  information: 
(1)  gauge  of  track;  (2)  angle  of  crossing;  (3)  curvature, 
if  any;  (4)  distance  between  centers  of  track,  in  case 
either  road  has  more  than  one  track;  and  also  the 
following  information  for  the  drilling  of  splice-bars: 
(1)  the  distance  from  the  end  of  rail  to  the  center  of 
first  hole;  (2)  distance  center  to  center  of  holes;  base 
of  rail  to  center  of  holes;  and  in  addition  to  the  above 
there  must  be  sent  a  sample  piece  of  the  rail  to  be  used, 


FIG.  71. 

a  full-size  drawing  of  the  rail  section,  or  the  number  of 
the  rail  section  in  the  rail  manufacturer's  catalogue. 

In  addition  to  the  above,  it  is  now  becoming  custom- 
ary for  the  railroad  to  specify  that  the  steel  in  the  rails 
used  for  the  frogs  shall  have  a  certain  composition  of  a 
higher  grade  than  in  the  rails  used  on  the  balance  of  the 
track. 

117.  Movable-point  Frog. — Where  the  angle  between 
the  crossing  tracks  is  small,  or  a  slip  switch  is  necessary, 
a  movable-point  frog  is  often  used.  In  Fig.  71  is  shown 
a  double  slip  switch  and  crossing,  the  lines  representing 
the  gauge  of  the  rails.  The  track  A  A  crosses  the  track 
B  B  by  means  of  the  stiff  frogs  F  and  F  and  the  movable- 


108  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

point  frogs  M  and  M'.  The  frog  M  consists  of  two 
switch  points,  a  b  and  a  c,  which  are  controlled  by  sepa- 
rate levers  attached  to  the  companion  points  at  M'. 
These  points  are  shorter  and  stronger  than  the  ordinary 
switch-point  rails.  In  the  figure  the  frogs  are  set  for 
the  track  A  A.  By  the  proper  manipulation  of  the 
switch-point  rails  de,  df  e',  fg,  /'  g'  and  the  movable 
frogs  trains  may  run  from  a  track  to  either  of  the  facing 
tracks. 

A  movable-point  frog  may  be  used  in  an  ordinary 
turnout,  in  the  McPherson  patented  safety  switch  and 
frog  neither  of  the  rails  of  the  main  track  is  cut.  Mov- 
able-point frogs  require  a  tower  with  interlocking  devices 
to  insure  their  proper  action. 


ARTICLE  IX. 
CROSSOVERS.    SWITCH  ATTACHMENTS. 

118.  Definition  of  Crossovers. — A  crossover  is  an 
arrangement  (Fig.  72)  of  two  turnouts  facing  each  other 
from  adjacent  tracks  by  means  of  which  a  train  may  pass 
from  one  track  to  a  parallel  track.  They  are  necessary 
at  block  signals,  so  that  a  train  may  run  over  the  left- 
hand  track  in  case  of  obstructions  on  the  other  track, 
and  also  at  stations  and  sidings  and  in  yards  for  shifting 
purposes.  It  is  usual  to  place  crossovers  along  a 
railroad  at  intervals  of  not  more  than  three  miles,  or  at 
all  points  where  orders  from  the  train  dispatcher  at 


TURNOUTS. 


109 


headquarters  can  be  delivered  to  the  conductor  of  the 
train.  In  case  of  damage  or  obstruction  to  the  track,  a 
train  may  be  run  around  the  obstruction  by  using  the 
reverse  track  between  crossovers.  This  is  done  through 
the  operators  in  the  stations  or  towers  along  the  line. 

119.  Theory  of  Crossovers. — To  illustrate  the  prin- 
ciple of  crossovers  the  simplest  case  of  a  crossover  be- 


o' 


FIG.  72. 


tween  parallel  tracks  when  the  frog  numbers,  the  dis- 
tance between  the  centers  of  the  tracks,  and  the  gauge 
are  given. 

In  Fig.  72  let  p  be  the  distance  between  the  centers  of 
track,  the  frog  angles  F  be  equal,  g  the  gauge,  and  k  the 
distance  between  the  points  of  frog  measured  along  the 
center  line  of  the  crossover.  Produce  the  line  B  E'  to 
D',  and  draw  B  H  normal  to  the  tracks;  then  in  the 
triangle  B  H  D',  B  E'  =  B  D'  —  E'  D',  or 

k  =  (p-g)  cosec  F  —  g  cot  F    (10) 


110  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND  CONSTRUCTION. 

andHB'  =  H  D'  —  B'  D',  or 

H  B'  =  (p-g)  cot  F  —  g  cosec  F     (11) 
In  the  triangle  0  B  A,  cos  A  0  E  =  0  A/0  B,  or 

cosF  =  '^  =  t^-g     (12) 
r  +  £g        2r  +  g 

Substituting  r  =  2gN2  (If  107)  in  (12),  we  have 

4gN2  —  g       4N2  —  1 
= 


g  1 

From  the  triangle  0  B  A,  sin  A  0  E  =  A  B/0  B,  and 

substituting  1  =2g  N  and  r  =  2g  N2,  we  have 

1  4N 

^F  =  r-+li  =  4NMTI     (H), 

cosec  F  =  N  -f  ^     (15),  and 
cot  F  =  N  —  ~     (16). 
Now  substituting  (15)  and  (16)  in  (10)  and  (11),  we  have 

k  =  (p  —  2g)N  +  i     (17),  and 
HB'=  (p-2g)N-^r     (18). 

Since    A  B  =  A'  B'  =  1  =  2gN   (H  106),  K  A'  =  2  1  + 
H  B',  or 

=  l  +  p(N-)     (19). 


1  20.  Table  and  Example.  —  Suppose  it  is  required  to 
lay  a  crossover  with  No.  8  frogs  between  parallel  tracks 
13  feet  between  centers:  Then  N  =  8,  1  =  75.3  and 
p  =  13.00  feet,  substituting  in  (19) 

K  A'  =  75.3  +  13(8  —  -^)  =  178.92  feet 

oZ 

and  from  (18) 

H  B'  =  (13  —  9.4166)  8  —  41  =  28.3  feet. 


TURNOUTS. 


Ill 


The  frog  distance  H  B'  must  always  be  the  theoretical 
distance  computed  from  (18),  but  the  total  length  of  the 
crossover,  K  A',  will  depend  upon  the  lead,  or  the  length 
of  switch-point  rails  used.  In  table  XV  are  given  the 
values  of  the  frog  distance  for  frogs  of  different  numbers. 

TABLE  XV. 

CROSSOVER  FROG  DISTANCES. 


FROG  No. 

CENTER  TO  CENTER  OF  TRACKS. 

12'  0" 

12'  2* 

13'  0* 

5  

12.3 
15.0 
17.7 
20.3 
22.9 
25.5 
28.1 
30.8 
38.6 
51.5 
61.9 

13.1 
16.0 
18.8 
21.6 
24.4 
27.2 
30.0 
32.8 
41.1 
54.8 
65.9 

17.3 
21.0 
24.6 
28.3 
31.9 
35.5 
39.1 
42.7 
53.5 
71.5 
85.9 

6  

7  

8  

9 

10  
11  

12 

15  
20  
24 

121.  Reinforced  Switch-point  Rails. — Switch-point 
rails  are  made  plain  or  reinforced.  The  plain  switch- 
point  rails  are  formed  by  planing  both  sides  of  the  head 


FIG.  73. 


FIG.  74. 


and  one  side  of  the  flange  of  the  rail  so  that  the  face  of 
the  rail  that  forms  the  gauge  of  the  turnout  will  be  in 
proper  position  when  the  switch  rail  is  held  against  the 
main  rail  by  the  switch  rods.  In  Figs.  73  and  74  are 


112  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

shown  sections  through  the  main  and  switch-point  rails 
near  the  point  of  switch,  Fig.  73  showing  a  plain  point, 
and  Fig.  74  a  reinforced  point.  The  switch  points  are 
reinforced  by  riveting  a  bar  of  steel  to  each  side  of  the 
rail,  as  shown  in  the  figure.  Short  switch-point  rails  are 
not  usually  reinforced,  but  long  points  are  always  re- 
inforced. 

122.  Switch  Rods. — Switch-point  rails  are  connected 


FIG.  75. 


and  held  in  position  by  one  or  more  rods  shown  in  Fig. 
75,  the  end  rod  being  connected  to  the  lever  or  device  by 
which  the  switch  is  thrown.  Switch  rods  arc  of  two 
general  types,  viz.,  plain  and  adjustable,  but  there  are 
many  forms  of  each.  Plain  switch  rods  are  most  gener- 
ally used  and  must  be  made  to  suit  the  design  of  the 
switch;  the  dimensions  of  switch  rods  depend  upon  the 

gauge,  the  weigh  of  rail,  the 
lead,  and  the  distance  from 
=z     the  point  of  switch  at  which 
FIG.  76.  they  are  placed. 

One  of  the  simplest  forms 

of  plain  switch  rods  is  shown  in  Fig.  76.  It  consists  of  a 
rectangular  steel  bar  to  which  are  bolted  clips  by  means 
of  which  the  bar  is  fastened  to  the  rail.  The  clips  are 
shaped  so  that  they  fit  neatly  to  the  flange  of  the  rail 
or  to  the  reinforcing  bar  and  are  fastened  to  the  rail  by 
bolts. 
Adjustable  rods  are  made  in  two  pieces  which  screw 


TURNOUTS.  113 

into  a  socket  or  joint  at  the  center  of  the  rod,  by  means  of 
which  slight  variations  in  the  length  of  the  rod  may  be 
made.  If  switch  rods  are  properly  designed,  there  is  no 
necessity  for  adjustment.  Switch  rods  on  account  of 
their  exposed  position  are  very  liable  to  become  bent, 
thus  shortening  the  distance  between  the  switch  rails, 
but  it  will  be  easier  to  take  out  the  plain  bar,  straighten 
it,  and  put  it  back,  than  it  will  to  attempt  to  adjust  the 
difference  due  to  the  bending  by  means  of  a  screw  ar- 
rangement that  has  probably  become  badly  rusted. 

The  end  switch  rod  passes  under  the  rails  and  is  at- 
tached to  the  switch  stand,  and  must  have  a  spring  ar- 
rangement that  will  allow  the  wheel  flanges  to  force  their 
way  through  the  heel  of  the  switch,  when  the  point  switch 
is  set  the  wrong  way.  These  springs  are  usually  at- 
tached to  the  part  of  the  rod  that  is  between  the  rails, 
although  there  are  some  switch  stand  devices  that  have 
the  spring  in  the  stand. 

123.  Switch  Stands. — A  switch  stand  should  have 
the  following  three  essential  points  for  satisfactory  opera- 
tion: First,  a  true  throw  with  as  little  lost  motion  as 
possible;  second,  a  safe  locking  device  so  that  it  cannot 
be  misplaced  through  carelessness;  and,  third,  a  sure  in- 
dication of  its  position,  by  target  in  daytime  and  lamp 
at  night.  A  true  throw  is  especially  important  for  a 
stub  switch,  since  the  stub  switch,  having  no  spring,  de- 
pends entirely  upon  the  position  of  the  lever,  while  in  a 
point  switch  the  spring  will  take  up  a  small  amount  of 
lost  motion. 

In  the  early  days  of  railroading,  when  the  stub  switch 
was  in  universal  use,  the  most  common  form  of  upright 
8 


114  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND  CONSTRUCTION. 

switch  stand  was  called  the  "harp"  pattern.  It  con- 
sisted of  a  straight  lever  held  upright  in  a  harp-shaped 
frame,  the  target  being  attached  to  the  upper  end  and  the 
connecting  rod  to  the  lower  end  of  the  lever.  The  prin- 
ciple of  the  device  was  very  simple,  and  furnished  a  cheap 
and  reliable  means  for  throwing  and  holding  the  switch 
rails.  During  the  daytime  it  showed  plainly  the  posi- 
tion of  the  switch;  when  the  lever  stood  in  a  vertical 
position  it  indicated  main  line,  and  a  side,  or  slanting, 
position  indicated  that  it  was  set  for  the  turnout.  A 
switch  light  could  not  be  readily  attached,  consequently 
the  harp  switch  stand  went  almost  entirely  out  of  use 
when  night  signals  became  necessary.  A  few  of  these 
stands  with  a  lamp  attachment  may  still  be  found. 

124.  Low  Switch  Stands. — There  are  a  great  many 
varieties  and  patterns  of  switch  stands.  In  Fig.  77  are 
shown  three  varieties  of  the  Ramapo  patent  safety  switch 
stands.  The  target  is  shaped  and  painted  so  that  it 
shows  clearly  whether  or  not  the  switch  is  open,  and  this 
is  also  indicated  by  the  lamp  that  is  placed  on  the  top  of 
the  stand  by  means  of  the  attachment  shown  at  the  top 
of  the  vertical  bar.  The  switch  can  also  be  locked  in  the 
position  desired.  Switch  stands  are  used  in  yards  and 
in  connection  with  side  tracks  that  are  not  much  used. 
In  case  of  an  important  switch  or  turnout  from  the  main 
track  a  semaphore  or  banjo  signal  is  used. 

In  the  Ramapo  switch  stands,  Fig.  77,  the  signal  and 
switch  rails  are  attached  to  the  same  switch  rod.  It  is 
imperative  that  the  signal  and  switch  work  in  unison, 
as  the  engineman  is  guided  solely  by  the  target  or  signal, 
as  it  would  be  impossible  to  distinguish  the  position  of 


TURNOUTS. 


115 


the  switch  rails  even  when  running  within  the  speed 
limits  allowed  in  yards. 

125.  Guard  Rails. — Guard  rails  are  always  placed 
opposite  a  frog,  as  shown  in  Fig.  59,  on  both  the  turnout 
and  main  rails.  They  are  usually  from  twelve  to  fifteen 
feet  in  length  and  are  shaped  in  different  ways.  In 
one  extreme  they  are  curved  throughout  their  entire 


length  and  are  so  placed  that  the  center  of  the  arc  is 
directly  opposite  the  point  of  frog;  and  in  the  other  ex- 
treme, six  or  eight  feet  of  the  center  of  the  guard  rail 
is  straight,  and  the  ends  are  gently  curved  so  that  the 
wheel  flanges  are  gradually  crowded  toward  the  main 
rail  and  allow  a  minimum  amount  of  side  motion  for  a 
distance  equal  to  the  straight  part  of  the  guard  rail. 


116 


RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


Arguments  are  advanced  in  favor  of  both  extremes,  but 
the  general  usage  is  between  the  two.  In  the  guard 
rail  shown  in  Fig.  78  the  straight  part  is  three  feet  long, 
and  the  guard  rail  is  so  placed  that  two  feet  of  the  straight 
part  is  ahead  of  the  point  directly  opposite  the  point  of 
frog  and  one  foot  of  the  straight  part  is  behind  it,  thus 
making  eight  feet  of  guard  rail  ahead  and  seven  feet  be- 
hind the  point  of  frog,  the  total  length  of  the  guard  rail 
being  fifteen  feet.  There  is  a  clear  flange-way,  or  dis- 
tance between  gauge  of  main  rail  and  outside  of  head  of 


FIG.  78. 

guard  rail,  of  If  inches  along  the  straight  part  of  the 
guard  rail,  and  four  inches  at  the  ends.  The  inner 
flange  of  the  guard  rail  is  planed  off  so  that  the  proper 
flange-way  can  be  obtained  without  interfering  with  the 
spiking  of  the  main  rail.  The  guard  rail  is  held  in  place 
by  tie  plates,  rail  braces,  and  spikes  not  shown  in  the 
figure.  Only  the  heads  of  the  rails  in  the  frog  are  in- 
dicated in  Fig.  78. 

126.  Foot-guards. — Foot-guards  are  devices  placed 
between  all  rails  which  come  so  close  together  that  a 
trackman  may  get  his  foot  caught  between  them,  such 


TURNOUTS.  117 

as  between  guard  rails  and  the  main  rail,  switch-point 
rails  and  the  main  rail,  and  other  parts  of  the  frog  or 
switch  with  similar  spaces.  A  large  number  of  railroad 
employees  are  injured  in  this  way  every  year,  particularly 
in  yards.  In  cutting,  drilling,  and  making  up  a  train 
very  quick  work  must  be  done,  the  men  jumping  from 
moving  cars  without  much  time  to  look  out  for  proper 
footing.  If  a  man  gets  his  foot  caught  in  one  of  these 
traps  under  these  circumstances,  he  is  very  liable  to  have 
a  foot  cut  off  or  be  killed  before  the  car  or  train  can  be 
stopped.  In  some  States  legislation  has  been  passed 
requiring  proper  safeguards  to  be  used,  and  in  all 
cases  railroad  officials  should  see  that  they  are  used. 
Wooden  blocks,  metal  guards, 
and  gravel  or  cinder  filling  are 
employed.  Frogs  frequently 
have  cast-iron  fillers  bolted  in 

during  manufacture.  The  most  difficult  part  to  safe- 
guard is  the  switch-point  rail.  A  piece  of  iron  or  steel 
bar  1J  inches  wide  and  J  inch  thick,  bent  as  shown  in 
Fig.  79,  and  bolted  to  the  webs  of  the  rails,  makes  a  light 
and  efficient  foot  guard. 

127.  Headblocks. — At  the  point  of  each  switch  are 
placed  two  pieces  of  timber  called  headblocks,  as  shown 
in  Fig.  80.  The  headblocks  should  be  the  same  thickness 
as  the  ties,  seven  inches,  or  at  most  not  more  than  one 
inch  thicker,  eight  to  ten  inches  wide,  and  twelve  to 
fifteen  feet  long.  The  point  of  switch  comes  directly 
over  the  first  block,  and  the  switch  stand,  or  whatever 
device  there  may  be  for  throwing  the  switch  and  the 
signal,  is  fastened  to  the  outer  ends  of  the  headblocks. 


118  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

Headblocks  are  necessary  to  insure  that  the  rods  and 
attachments  that  connect  the  switch  rails  to  the  switch 
stand  cannot  become  deranged  through  the  shifting  of 
the  track.  In  some  cases,  such  as  where  a  simple  ground 
lever  is  used  for  throwing  the  switch,  only  one  block  is 
used.  It  is  better  that  headblocks  be  sawed,  but  they 
may  be  hewed  if  they  give  a  true  surface.  In  case  of 
only  one  block  being  used,  it  is  sometimes  specified  that 
it  shall  be  seven  inches  thick,  fourteen  to  sixteen  inches 
wide,  and  twelve  to  fifteen  feet  long,  depending  upon  the 
standards  of  the  particular  railroad. 

128.  Switch  Timbers. — In  order  that  the  ties  may 
extend  the  same  distance  outside  the  rails,  it  is  necessary 
that  the  ties  for  a  switch  be  made  longer  than  the  regu- 
lation tie.  These  ties  of  special  length  are  called  switch 
timbers.  When  the  regular  ties  are  8J  feet  long  and  the 
gauge  is  4  feet  8J  inches,  the  end  of  the  tie  is  20f  inches 
from  the  gauge  line.  A  switch  may  be  laid  roughly  with 
ordinary  ties  by  placing  a  tie  under  the  main  track  and 
the  next  tie  under  the  turnout  track,  alternately.  This 
gives  an  unequal  bearing  for  the  different  rails,  necessi- 
tates an  excessive  amount  of  timber,  and  is  used  only 
when  proper  switch  timbers  can  not  be  obtained. 

A  set  of  switch  timbers  for  a  No.  6  turnout  is  shown  in 
Fig.  80.  The  lower  ends  of  the  timbers  follow  a  curve 
parallel  to  the  curve  of  the  turnout  and  20 f  inches  from 
the  gauge  of  the  outer  rail,  the  timbers  being  cut  to  the 
nearest  inch  in  length.  Switch  timbers  are  placed  under 
the  turnout  up  to  the  point  where  the  tracks  are  far 
enough  apart  to  allow  regular  ties  to  be  used,  as  shown 
to  the  right  of  Fig.  80.  As  soon  as  this  point  is  reached 


-45'llX- 


k  -<5^» 


-100- 


n  n  n  n  n  n  n  n 


Jsbfct 


TURNOUTS.  119 

the  outer  ends  of  the  ties  under  the  turnout  are  grad- 
ually placed  closer  together  until  the  ties  are  normal,  or 
radial,  to  the  track. 

On  some  railroads,  instead  of  having  each  switch 
timber  of  different  length  with  the  center  of  their  ends 
following  the  parallel,  or  concentric  curve,  two  or  more 
adjacent  timbers  are  made  the  same  length,  provided 
the  variation  from  the  theoretic  length  is  not  too  great. 
This  method  is  indicated  by  the  broken  lines  at  the  lower 
part  of  Fig.  80,  three  timbers  being  taken  of  equal  length, 
the  middle  timber  being  the  true 
length,  and  the  ends  of  the  timbers 
looking  like  a  series  of  steps. 

129.  Length    of    Switch    Tim- 
bers.— Switch    timbers   are  placed 
at  distances  apart  governed  by  the 
standard  of  the  railroad.     In  Fig. 
80  is  shown  the  standard  spacing 
of  switch  timbers  for  a  No.  6  turn- 
out on  the  Pennsylvania  R.  R.,  the 
timbers  being  placed  closer  together 
under  the  switch  rails  and  frog.     The  length  of  switch 
timbers  may  be  determined  by  plotting  the  details  of 
the  turnout  to  a  large  scale,  or  by  computing  the  length 
when  the  distance  from  the  point  of  switch  is  known. 

In  Fig.  81,  let  o  be  the  center  of  the  turnout  curve, 
draw  I  m  and  d  n  parallel  to  the  main  track  and  8 J  feet 
apart  representing  the  ends  of  regular  ties,  and  the  curve 
d  b  k  at  the  corresponding  distance  from  the  turnout 
track.  Then  to  determine  the  length  of  the  switch 
timber  a  b,  draw  b  c  =  x  parallel  to  the  main  track,  and 


120 


RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


the  line  o  b,  and  let  the  radius  o  d  =  rv  and  r  be  the 

radius  of  the  turnout.     In  the  triangle  c  o  b,  sin  cob  = 

—,  and  in  the  triangle  d  o  b,  c  d  =  r,  vers  cob,  then 

a  b  =  8J  +  c  d     (20). 

In  the  above  formula  all  the  distances  are  in  feet.  The 
lengths  of  all  the  switch  timbers  being  determined,  they 
are  compiled  into  a  table  called  the  bill  of  timber,  there 
being  a  bill  of  timber  for  each  style  of  turnout.  In 
table  XVI  is  given  the  Pennsylvania  R.  R.  bill  of  timber 
for  a  No.  6  turnout  in  which  the  turnout  track  is  tangent 
from  the  heel  of  the  frog,  which  requires  more  of  the  long 
timbers  than  where  the  turnout  is  curved  beyond  the  heel 
of  the  frogs,  as  in  Fig.  80,  the  first  two  pieces  being  the 
headblocks. 

TABLE  XVI. 

BILL  OF  TIMBER. 

No.  6  TURNOUT.     TIES  7"   X    10". 


No.  of 
Pieces. 

Length. 

• 

No.  of 
Pieces. 

Length. 

No.  of 
Pieces. 

Length. 

2 

12'    6" 

10'     I" 

1 

13'    8" 

g,    r 

10'    4" 

14'    0" 

8'    8" 

10'     7" 

14'    4" 

8'    9" 

10'  10" 

14'    7" 

8'  10" 

11'     1" 

14'  11" 

8'  11" 

11'     5" 

15'    3" 

9'    0" 

11'    9" 

15'    7" 

9'    2" 

12'    1" 

1 

15'  11" 

9'    4" 

12'    4" 

1 

16'    4" 

9'    6" 

12'    8" 

1 

16'    8" 

9'    8" 

13'    0" 

1 

17'    0" 

9'  10" 

13'    4" 

Total,  36  Pieces. 


433'  0"  lineal. 


2526  feet  B.  M. 


TURNOUTS.  121 

130.  Derailing  Switch. — A  derailing  switch  is  a 
device  by  which  a  train  or  car  can  be  derailed  when  ab- 
solutely necessary.  They  are  placed  on  sidings,  as  at 
a  b,  Fig.  82,  to  prevent  a  car  from  running  on  the  main 
track  from  the  siding,  and  the  switch  placed  far  enough 
back  of  the  frog  to  prevent  the  train  or  car  when  ditched 
from  interfering  with  the  main  line  track.  Derailing 
switches  are  also  placed  at  the  entrance  to  single-track 
railroad  bridges,  particularly  drawbridges,  and  also  at 
grade  railroad  crossings.  In  a  grade  railroad  crossing, 
in  most  cases,  when  the  tracks  and  signals  are  set  for  one 
railroad,  the  derailing  switches  on  the  other  railroad  are 


FIG.  82. 

set  so  that  a  train  can  not  run  into  the  train  having  the 
right  of  way,  it  being  invariably  less  dangerous  to  ditch 
one  train  than  to  run  the  two  trains  together.  In  Fig.  82, 
a  b  is  a  switch  point  controlled  by  a  lever. 

131.  Interlocking  Switches. — Interlocking  devices 
are  too  many  and  complicated  to  give  anything  like  a 
full  discussion^  therefore  only  a  brief  description  of  the 
manner  of  working  an  interlocked  switch  will  be  given 
here.  When  a  train  is  to  be  run  from  the  main  line  to  a 
turnout,  or  vice  versa,  the  tracks  being  clear,  the  tower 
operator  throws  a  lever  which  opens  the  switch  and  sets 
all  necessary  signals ;  by  means  of  an  interlocking  device, 


122  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION 

this  lever  is  prevented  from  being  thrown  back  in  its 
first  position  until  the  entire  train  has  passed  through  the 
switch.  The  signals  in  the  mean  time  are  set  so  that 
another  train  can  not  run  into  the  first  train  without 
disregarding  the  signals.  The  device  that  prevents  the 
lever  from  being  thrown  back  too  soon  usually  consists 
of  a  long  flat  bar  of  iron  which  lies  close  to  the  outer  face 
of  the  head  of  the  rail,  with  its  top  flush  with  the  head  of 
the  rail.  This  bar  works  on  the  pivot  principle  by  means 
of  small  angle  levers,  and  in  passing  from  the  position  in 
which  it  lies  when  the  switch  is  closed  to  its  position 
when  the  switch  is  open,  or  vice  versa,  it  rises  above  the 
head  of  the  rail  and  falls  to  a  position  level  with  the  top 
of  the  rail.  This  bar,  called  a  detector  bar,  is  attached 
to  the  switch  device  in  such  a  manner  that  it  works  auto- 
matically, and  is  of  such  length  that  there  is  always  at 
least  one  wheel  on  it  when  a  train  is  passing;  the  wheels 
hold  it  down,  thus  preventing  the  lever  in  the  tower  or 
any  of  the  signals  being  changed  until  the  entire  train  has 
passed. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

SIDETRACKS,  YARDS,  TERMINALS, 
SIGNALS. 


ARTICLE  X. 

SIDETRACKS  AND  YARDS. 

• 
132.  Passing  Sidings. — Sidetracks  may  be  divided 

into  two  general  classes,  viz.,  passing  sidings  and  freight 
sidings.  Passing  sidings  are  tracks  that  are  used  to 
facilitate  the  running  of  trains.  On  a  single-track  rail- 
road passing  sidings  are  needed  at  more  or  less  regular 
distances  apart,  so  that  trains  may  pass  each  other;  the 
less  the  traffic,  the  farther  apart  the  passing  sidings. 
Originally  these  sidings  were  only  long  enough  to  allow 
the  longest  freight  train  to  stand  on  them;  as  traffic  in- 
creased these  sidings  were  made  long  enough  to  hold  two 
or  more  trains.  Heavy  traffic  on  single-track  roads  is 
frequently  subjected  to  considerable  delay.  An  in- 
stance of  this  was  seen  on  a  southern  railroad  only  a  few 
years  ago,  when  two  south -bound  trains  met  three  north- 
bound trains  at  a  passing  siding  that  would  hold  only 
one  train.  It  took  several  hours  to  straighten  them 
out,  part  of  the  delay  being  due  to  a  very  dark  night. 

123 


124  RAILROAD   TRACK   AND    CONSTRUCTION. 

133.  Second  and  Third  Tracks.— When  traffic  in- 
creases to  such  an  extent  that  single-track  and  passing 
sidings  are  inadequate,  the  siding  is  extended  until  it  is 
practically  a  double-track  road  in  long  stretches.  In 
the  same  manner  when  it  becomes  necessary  on  double- 
track  roads  to  have  sidings  in  order  to  allow  passenger 
trains  to  pass  the  slower  freight  trains  going  in  the  same 
direction,  a  third  track  is  laid  in  such  manner  that  the 
middle  track  is  the  siding.  It  is  at  the  turnout  at  the 
ends  of  such  tracks  that  the  large  numbered  frogs 
(No.  15  to  20)  are  used,  these  frogs  having  such  a 
small  angle  and  the  lead  being  so  great  that  the  siding  can 
be  entered  at  a  speed  of  30  miles  per  hour,  which  would 
be  impossible  without  great  danger  of  derailment  over  a 
frog  with  a  small  number. 

On  double-track  railroads  with  heavy  traffic  there  is 
usually  a  side  track  at  each  signal  block,  so  that  freight 
trains  can  be  signaled  and  run  out  of  the  way  of  passenger 
trains.  If  there  is  no  crossover  within  two  or  three 
miles  of  the  block  tower,  one  is  usually  laid  at  the  tower. 
This  enables  trains  to  get  from  either  track  to  the  siding, 
and  also  to  cross  over  and  run  the  reverse  track  in  case  of 
one  of  the  tracks  being  blocked  by  an  accident. 

Some  railroads  have  such  heavy  passenger  traffic  that 
practically  all  freight  trains,  except  way  freights,  are  run 
as  special  trains  at  such  times  as  will  not  interfere  with 
the  passenger  trains.  In  cases  of  unusual  passenger 
traffic,  such  as  comes  on  roads  centering  in  Washington, 
D.  C.,  at  the  Presidents'  inauguration,  it  is  nothing  un- 
usual to  have  a  freight  take  two  or  three  days  to  run  100 
miles.  The  train  will  be  started  from  one  end  of  the 


SIDETRACKS,    YARDS,    TERMINALS,    SIGNALS.         125 

division  and  will  run  until  flagged  and  sidetracked;  as 
soon  as  there  is  a  chance  it  will  reach  another  block,  and 
so  on.  As  soon  as  the  traffic  warrants,  these  roads  are 
changed  to  three-  and  four- track  roads.  This  develop- 
ment is  going  on  all  over  the  United  States  at  a  greater 
rate  than  ever  before,  considering  intervals  of  several 
years  each. 

134.  Freight  Sidings. — When  the  freight  handled  at 
any  station  is  more  than  can  be  loaded  and  unloaded 
from  and  to  the  platform,  at  least  one  siding  is  necessary. 
The  simplest  siding  used  for  this  purpose  consists  of  a 
turnout  and  a  track  parallel  to  the  main  track,  and  long 
enough  to  hold  one  or  more  cars;  this  track  may  either 
turn  back  into  the  main  track  or  have  a  bumper  at  the 
lower  end.     If,  as  is  sometimes  the  case,  a  siding  is  built 
for  the  convenience  of  people  at  some  distance  from  a 
regular  siding,  in  this  case  there  is  very  often  no  freight 
house,  there  being  simply  an  uncovered  platform,  and  in 
some  cases  there  is  no  platform  at  all,  teams  driving  close 
to  the  car  to  load  and  unload.     When  the  railroad 
passes  through  a  village  or  town,  there  is  always  a  freight 
house  with  a  siding  long  enough  to  accommodate  the 
traffic,  and  probably  sidings  to  coal  dumps  in  addition. 

135.  Yards. — In   towns  and   cities   large  enough  to 
warrant  several  side  tracks,  these  tracks  are  usually 
arranged  in  a   system  of  tracks  called  a  yard.     Each 
manufacturing  plant  will  have  its  individual  sidings  for 
handling  freight  in  car-load  lots,  the  general  freight  traffic 
being  handled  at  the  freight  station  of  the  railroad.     An 
engine  or  engines  must  be  provided  to  place  the  cars  at 
the  proper  points  for  loading  and  unloading,  to  place  the 


126  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

cars  in  the  yard  for  shipment,  and  then  to  arrange  them 
in  trains  to  be  forwarded  in  the  proper  direction. 

A  small  yard  is  laid  out  along  the  general  lines  shown 
in  Fig.  83.  This  sketch  represents  a  yard  alongside  of  the 
two  main  running  tracks.  D  C  is  a  crossover  by  which 
east-bound  trains  may  pass  over  to  the  west-bound 
track  and  then  to  the  drilling  track  A  B,  from  which  they 
can  enter  the  ladder  track  BE.  If  the  ends  of  the  yards 
are  symmetrical,  a  west-bound  train  will  enter  the  yard 
at  the  east  end;  otherwise  it  will  back  in  at  A.  A  yard 
must  be  designed  to  suit  the  work  required  by  the  traffic, 
and  only  a  few  general  points  can  be  stated  as  common  to 


FIG.  83. 

all  conditions.  In  many  yards  the  ladder  track  leaves 
the  main  track  near  the  point  B,  and  does  not  have 
the  drilling  track  A  B.  One  of  the  first  principles  in 
switching  is  to  keep  the  mam  track  as  free  as  possible; 
if  the  track  A  B  is  not  long  enough  to  hold  the  longest 
train,  it  will  be  practically  impossible  to  cut  and  drill  the 
trains  in  the  yard  without  backing  on  the  main  track. 
It  is  usually  necessary  to  have  a  series  of  crossovers  be- 
tween the  yard  tracks. 

136.  Gravity  Yards. — Cars  are  made  up  into  trams 
by  one  of  two  general  methods,  viz.,  by  being  pushed, 
or  kicked,  into  place,  and  by  the  aid  of  gravity.  The 
first  method  must  be  used  where  the  yard  is  level.  The 


SIDETRACKS,    YARDS,   TERMINALS,   SIGNALS.         127 

train  is  cut  so  that  the  desired  car  is  on  the  end  of  the 
string,  the  engine  pulls  the  cars  out  on  the  drilling  track, 
and  then  pushes  them  rapidly  on  the  track  where  the 
train  is  to  be  made  up,  the  car  is  uncoupled,  the  engine 
stops,  and  the  car  is  carried  by  its  momentum  to  the 
desired  spot,  usually  being  controlled  by  a  brakeman  us- 
ing the  hand-brakes.  This  is  repeated  until  all  the  cars 
are  coupled  into  a  train,  and  then  the  train  is  ready  to  be 
dispatched.  The  opposite  is  done  with  an  incoming 
train  with  local  freight;  each  car  is  drilled  out  and  taken 
to  the  siding  where  it  is  to  be  unloaded. 

Where  the  topography  is  such  that  the  desired  grade 
can  be  obtained,  gravity  yards  may  be  constructed,  the 
gradient  sloping  downward  from  the  entering  ladder 
track,  there  being  a  system  of  crossovers  by  which  the 
cars  may  be  run  on  to  one  track.  In  order  that  a  car 
will  start  upon  loosening  the  brakes  a  gradient  of  0.8  to 
1.0  per  cent,  is  required;  the  rate  of  gradient  required 
depends  upon  the  temperature  of  the  journals  of  the  cars, 
the  heavier  gradient  being  required  for  the  colder  weather. 
In  a  strictly  gravity  yard,  the  work  is  done  entirely  by 
gravity,  and  consists  in  loosening  the  brakes  and  allow- 
ing the  car  to  run  to  the  desired  point.  There  are  no 
yards  dependent  entirely  upon  gravity,  in  the  United 
States.  The  principal  objection  to  gravity  yards  is  the 
uncertainty  of  the  action  of  the  car  at  different  temper- 
atures; if  the  gradient  is  made  steep  enough  to  insure 
the  car  starting  in  the  coldest  weather,  there  is  danger  of 
the  car  getting  beyond  control  in  milder  weather,  neces- 
sitating special  devices  to  prevent  the  car  from  running 
away,  or  rather  for  stopping  it  while  running  away. 


128  RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

137.  Partial  Gravity  Yards.— Under  normal    con- 
ditions a  gradient  of  0.4  per  cent,  is  sufficient  to  just 
keep  the  car  moving  after  it  has  been  started.     Some 
yards  are  built  with  a  gradient  of  about  — 0.5  per  cent,  on 
the  drilling  track,  and  — 0.25  to  —0.4  on  the  standing 
tracks.     By  this  method  the  engine  pulls  the  car  out  on 
the  drilling  track  and  just  starts  it,  the  grade  carrying  it 
to  the  point  desired.     This  method  is  far  preferable  to  the 
level  yard,  and  probably  also  to  the  strictly  gravity 
yard,  as  there  is  practically  no  danger  of  a  runaway. 
In  shunting,  kicking,  or  making  a  flying  switch,  it  is  very 
difficult  to  give  the  car  just  the  right  start,  and  the  whole 
operation  is  much  more  dangerous  for  the  train  crew. 

There  are  other  methods  of  classifying  a  train,  and  also 
many  ways  of  arranging  a  yard,  which  can  not  be  shown 
here.  The  only  way  to  get  an  adequate  idea  of  the 
manner  of  arranging  yards  and  terminals  is  to  read  the 
descriptions  given  hi  the  engineering  periodicals  and 
study  the  accompanying  conditions. 

138.  Terminals. — A  terminal  yard  is  placed  at  the 
end  of  each  division  of  a  railroad,  and  their  proper  design 
is  a  still  broader  question  than  that  of  a  yard  at  an  inter- 
mediate piont.     It  is  essential  that  both  passenger. and 
freight  stations  be  placed  as  near  the  center  of  a  city  as 
possible,  particularly  where  there  are  competing  roads. 
Most  yards  and  terminal  yards  were  started  years  ago, 
when  the  road  had  far  less  traffic,  and  there  was  in  some 
cases  too  little  attention  paid  to  future  needs.     Tracks 
have  been  added  from  time  to  time,  until  finally  there  is 
not  only  no  way  of  increasing  the  size  of  the  yards  with- 
out enormous  expense  for  real  estate,  but  the  general 


SIDETRACKS,    YARDS,   TERMINALS,   SIGNALS.         129 

design  is  not  economical.  An  instance  of  what  rail- 
roads are  compelled  to  do  in  order  to  improve  their 
facilities  is  shown  in  the  work  now  in  course  of  construc- 
tion in  and  around  New  York  city.  It  would  not  have 
paid  to  have  attempted  to  anticipate  all  of  this  improve- 
ment twenty-five  years  ago,  as  the,  at  that  time,  useless 
expenditure  would  have  put  an  unsupportable  burden 
upon  the  various  railroads,  and  the  excess  sum  then  ex- 
pended would  now,  at  compound  interest,  have  amounted 
to  an  enormous  sum  of  money. 

The  design  of  a  terminal  yard  depends  entirely  upon 
the  local  conditions.  In  some  terminals  freight  is  mostly 
for  local  use  or  shipment,  while  in  others  the  greater 
proportions  must  be  forwarded  to  other  points,  the  yard 
being  used  principally  to  classify  through  freight. 

One  of  the  principal  features  in  which  a  terminal  yard 
differs  from  an  intermediate  yard  is  that  the  engines 
must  be  housed,  and  fuel  stored  for  them,  and  in  some 
cases  repairs  are  made  to  all  the  rolling  stock.  This 
requires  many  additional  tracks  that  must  be  kept 
separate  from  the  yard  tracks,  as  well  as  proper  build- 
ings and  fixtures  for  the  purpose.  In  all  yards  there  are 
facilities  for  at  least  as  much  repairing  of  cars  as  will 
allow  the  car  to  proceed,  but  at  terminals  there  must 
be  a  fully  equipped  rolling  stock  "hospital." 

139.  Roundhouses. — Roundhouses  are  necessary  for 
the  proper  care  of  locomotive  engines  at  all  points  where 
it  is  necessary  to  have  extra  engines.  An  engine  cannot 
be  run  continuously,  it  being  laid  off  at  certain  inter- 
vals between  runs,  a  continuous  run  being  the  length 
of  the  division  of  the  railroad.  Consequently  there  is 
9 


130 


RAILROAD   TRACK   AND    CONSTRUCTION. 


always  a  roundhouse  at  each  terminal  yard,  and  also 
probably  at  large  intermediate  yards.  When  not  in 
use,  the  fires  are  thoroughly  cleaned  and  banked  and  the 
engine  is  run  into  the  roundhouse,  where  it  is  thoroughly 
examined,  wiped,  and  any  small  repairs  and  adjustments 
made.  The  general  plan  of  a  roundhouse  and  turntable 
is  shown  in  Fig.  84.  A  track  long  enough  to  hold  the 
largest  locomotive  and  tender  is  arranged  so  that  it  can 
be  turned  on  a  pivot,  and  stopped  and  fastened  by  a 
clutch  opposite  any  of  the  tracks  radiating  from  it.  A 

turntable  is  necessary  in 
connection  with  a  round- 
house, and  also  at  the  end 
of  spur  lines,  in  order  to 
turn  the  engine  for  the 
return  trip.  The  engines 
come  from  the  yard  on  the 
track  A  B,  and  are  run  on 
to  the  turntable;  the  turn- 
table is  then  turned  until 
it  is  opposite  the  desired 
track,  and  the  engine  is  run  into  the  roundhouse. 

All  the  roundhouse  tracks  radiate  from  the  center  0 
of  the  turntable  and  turntable  pit.  The  distance  C  D  is 
sometimes  made  great  enough  to  allow  the  engines  to  stand 
with  the  greater  part  of  the  engine  outside  of  the  round- 
house, and  still  have  proper  clearance  at  the  turntable  end 
of  the  tracks.  In  any  case  the  distance  C  D  must  be  great 
enough  to  allow  proper  clearance  at  the  posts  a  a  from 
which  the  doors  are  swung.  If  the  distance  C  D  is  great 
enough,  the  ends  of  the  adjacent  rails  of  adjoining  tracks 


FIG.  84. 


SIDETRACKS,    YARDS,   TERMINALS,   SIGNALS.         131 

may  be  placed  at  a  distance  apart  equal  to  the  width 
of  the  base  of  the  rail  plus  f  inch  (same  as  the  throw)  and 
ordinary  rails  are  used.  This  is  shown  on  the  right  side 
of  Fig.  84.  If  the  distance  C  D  is  too  short  for  the  above 
arrangement,  frogs  must  be  used,  as  shown  on  the  left 
side  of  the  figure. 

140.  Ash-pits  and  Coal-bins. — Ash-pits  are  neces- 
sary for  the  cleaning  or  dumping  of  the  engine  grates. 
They  are  usually  placed  on  the  track  A  B  near  the  round- 
house. Ash-pits  are  also  built  in  the  roundhouse  under 
each  track.  The  proper  arrangement  of  the  ash-pit  is  one 
of  the  principal  items  in  connection  with  the  care  of  en- 
gines, the  fires  being  cleaned  after  each  trip  in  order  to 
remove  the  clinkers.  The  clinkers  and  ashes  are  cooled 
with  water  and  then  loaded  on  cars  for  removal.  The 
method  of  removing  the  material  from  the  pits  ranges 
all  the  way  from  shoveling  into  wheelbarrows  to  fairly 
elaborate  mechanical  devices.  The  greater  proportion 
of  the  material  from  the  ash-pits  consists  of  clinker,  and 
it  is  from  this  source  that  cinder  ballast  is  obtained. 

It  is  quite  a  problem  to  handle  coal  for  locomotives 
economically.  The  simplest  arrangement  consists  in 
hauling  the  coal  on  a  high  trestle  and  dumping  it  into 
bins;  a  low  track  is  run  alongside  the  bins,  and  the  coal 
run  into  the  tenders.  In  some  cases  the  coal  is  put 
in  the  tender  by  means  of  cables  and  buckets,  the  cables 
being  stretched  across  the  track  and  at  right  angles  to  it. 


132  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

ARTICLE  XI. 
WATER-SUPPLY  FOR  LOCOMOTIVES. 

141.  Water  for  Locomotive  Boilers. — There  is  no 
question  that  is  of  more  importance  to  the  item  of  engine 
repairs  and  operation  than  that  of  an  ample  supply  of 
soft  water.     Water  for  this  purpose  should  be  free  from  all 
impurities  that  will  affect  the  efficiency  of  the  boiler  tubes 
and  the  boiler  in  general.     Hard  water,  containing  a 
large  percentage  of  lime,  has  in  some  cases  decreased 
the  life  of  locomotive  boilers  to  one-half  the  time  they 
would  have  lasted  with  soft  water.     In  order  to  get  an 
adequate  supply  of  good  water  some  railroads  have 
bought  up  entire  watersheds,  built  their  own  reservoirs, 
and,   where  necessary,   installed   pumping  machinery. 
A  large  amount  of  water  must  be  necessary  in  order  to 
warrant  the  installation  of  a  separate  plant,  and  in  ordi- 
nary cases  it  is  more  economical  to  buy  water  from  a 
local  plant,  even  if  the  water  must  be  treated  by  a  soft- 
ening process  before  using. 

Water  is  supplied  to  the  locomotive  tender  in  three 
principal  ways:  (1)  from  water-tanks;  (2)  from  mains; 
and  (3)  from  track  troughs,  or  tanks. 

142.  Water-tanks. — It  should    be  possible    for    an 
engine  to  take  water  at  short  intervals  along  the  line, 
particularly  at  all  regular  stops.     In  country  where  the 
regular  stopping-places  are  long  distances  apart,  inter- 
mediate water-tanks  must  be  maintained,  and  whenever 
possible  the  tanks  should  be  placed  just  over  a  summit, 


Of 


SIDETRACKS,   YARDS,   TERMINALS,   SIGNALS.         133 

so  that  gravity  will  assist  the  engine  in  starting  the  train. 
One  of  the  most  common  methods  is  to  pump  the  water 
from  a  well  or  stream  to  a  tank.  An  iron  pipe  with  the 
outer  end  curved  downward  at  an  angle  of  90  degrees 
is  attached  to  the  lower  part  of  the  tank  in  such  manner 
that  it  may  be  swung  over  the  center  of  the  track  when 
filling  the  tender  and  swung  parallel  to  the  track  and  well 
out  of  the  way  when  not  in  use.  A  piece  of  canvas  or 
rubber  hose  is  attached  to  the  outer  end  of  the  pipe  so 
that  it  can  be  run  into  the  opening  of  the  tender  and 
prevent  waste.  The  pipe  is  opened  and  closed  by  means 
of  a  valve,  which  is  usually  controlled  by  a  wheel  attach- 
ment. 

The  tanks  are  usually  made  of  wood  or  steel.  Wooden 
tanks  are  circular  and  made  of  staves  held  together 
by  iron  bands  or  hoops,  and  are  supported  by  timber 
trestling  or  a  masonry  foundation.  Steel  tanks  are 
circular  in  shape  and  made  of  boiler  plates  riveted  to- 
gether in  the  usual  way.  They  are  supported  on  steel 
towers  or  masonry  foundations.  The  size  of  the  tank 
will  depend  upon  the  amount  of  water  required  and  the 
nature  of  the  supply.  If  the  rate  of  pumping  is  slow  and 
a  large  amount  of  water  is  required  in  a  short  time,  a 
larger  tank  will  be  required  than  when  the  rate  of  pump- 
ing can  be  varied  and  the  demand  is  more  uniformly 
distributed  throughout  the  day.  The  capacity  of  tanks 
varies  from  20,000  to  50,000  gallons. 

143.  Standpipes. — Stand  pipes  are  used  when  the 
water  is  furnished  through  a  main,  the  standpipe  being 
of  sufficient  height  and  having  an  arm,  as  described  above, 
which  is  swung  over  the  center  of  the  track,  the  standpipe, 


134  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND  CONSTRUCTION. 

or  column,  being  simply  a  device  to  hold  and  control 
the  arm  at  the  proper  elevation.  The  water  is  obtained 
from  the  town  or  city  supply,  the  railroad  company  pay- 
ing an  annual  rental  for  each  column  for  all  the  water 
that  may  be  used,  or  a  water-meter  may  be  attached. 
On  roads  having  two  or  more  tracks  a  stand  pipe  is  placed 
on  the  opposite  side  of  the  tracks  from  the  company 
tank,  and  is  connected  with  the  tank  by  means  of  a  pipe 
passing  under  the  tracks. 

Tanks  and  stand  pipes  located  at  stations  are  placed 
as  near  as  possible  to  where  the  engine  stands  while  mak- 
ing a  regular  stop,  in  order  that  the  engine  may  take 

water   while  the  baggage  is 
T      .f-20'^      ^  being  shifted  and  passengers 

1  1      getting  off  and  on  the  train, 

thus  saving  unnecessary  de- 
lay. 

FIG.  85.  144.  Track    Tanks.  —  On 

tracks    over   which   a   gr.eat 

many  through  trains  are  run,  arrangements  are  made 
by  means  of  which  the  tank  in  the  locomotive  tender 
may  be  filled  while  the  train  is  in  motion.  This  is  ac- 
complished by  means  of  a  track  tank  or  trough  placed 
between  the  rails  and  kept  filled  with  water,  the  general 
arrangement  being  shown  in  Fig.  85.  The  trough  is 
about  7  inches  deep  and  20  inches  wide  in  the  clear,  and 
is  countersunk  about  2  inches  into  the  tie,  which  makes 
its  top  about  the  same  elevation  as  the  top  of  the  rails. 
It  is  made  of  steel  plates  and  braces,  all  the  rivet  heads 
on  the  inside  of  the  trough  being  countersunk  to  present 
a  smooth  surface  to  the  scoop.  The  ends  of  the  trough 


SIDETRACKS,   YARDS,   TERMINALS,   SIGNALS.         135 

are  shaped  as  shown,  the  bottom  being  gradually  in- 
clined to  the  surface,  and  the  ends  being  inclined  in  the 
same  way,  to  insure  against  trouble  in  case  the  scoop  is 
dropped  too  soon  or  not  pulled  up  in  time.  The  speed 
of  the  train  forces  the  water  up  the  scoop,  which  is 
lowered  from  the  tender  until  its  mouth  is  immersed  in 
the  water.  In  order  to  prevent  the  water  from  entering 
the  tender  with  a  velocity  so  great  that  it  would  injure 
the  tender,  the  speed  of  the  train  is  reduced  a  little  and 
the  scoop  increases  in  size  from  the  mouth  toward  the 
upper  end,  the  velocity  being  decreased  in  proportion. 
The  water  is  usually  supplied  from  a  tank,  the  supply 
being  controlled  by  valves. 


ARTICLE  XII. 
SIGNALS. 

145.  Development  of  Signals. — Signals  are  devices 
by  the  aid  of  which  the  engineman  and  train  crew  may 
know  whether  or  not  they  have  a  clear  track.  In  the 
early  days  of  single  track  and  few  trains  this  was  accom- 
plished entirely  by  flags,  and  before  the  invention  of  the 
telegraph  the  train  was  entirely  in  the  hands  of  the  train 
crew  between  stations.  As  traffic  increased  and  the 
telegraph  came  into  use  it  was  possible  for  the  chief 
operator  to  control  all  trains  from  one  central  point. 
By  telegraphing  ahead  and  setting  a  signal  the  train 


136  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

could  be  stopped  for  further  orders.  These  signaling 
points  were  far  apart.  As  the  number  of  trains  per  day 
increased  it  was  necessary  to  control  them  at  shorter 
intervals,  and  this  has  increased  until  now  on  many 
railroads  signals  are  placed  a  distance  of  one  mile  or 
less  apart.  There  are  several  methods  of  signaling, 
the  principal  distinct  types  of  which  are  the  manual 
and  the  automatic. 

146.  Manual  Signaling. — One  of  the  earliest  forms 
of  the  complete  control  of  trams  by  signals  was  the 
"  block  tower"  system.  This  system  is  still  in  use,  but 
the  details  of  operating  the  signals  have  been  greatly 
improved.  The  early  forms  of  the  method  consisted 
of  towers  spaced  three  or  more  miles  apart.  Each  tower 
had  two  telegraph  operators,  a  day-  and  a  night-operator, 
and  had  one  signal  attached  which  could  be  placed  in 
two  positions,  viz.,  at  danger  or  at  clear.  When  a  train 
passed  a  block,  the  operator  threw  his  signal  to  danger 
and  kept  it  there  until  the  operator  at  the  next  block 
ahead  telegraphed  that  the  train  had  passed  his  block, 
then  the  first  operator  threw  his  signal  to  clear.  This 
was  purely  a  manual  system,  the  operator  being  able  at 
any  time  to  throw  his  signal  to  either  position,  depend- 
ing entirely  upon  his  information  by  telegraph.  This 
method  works  all  right  as  long  as  the  operator  does  not 
become  confused.  Many  accidents  occurred  from  the 
carelessness  or  wrong  interpretation  of  orders  by  the 
operator,  in  many  cases  the  fault  lying  with  the  railroad 
officials,  because  through  false  economy  or  unusual  cir- 
cumstances the  operator  was  held  at  his  post  for  so  long 
a  time  that  he  was  temporarily  mentally  and  physically 


SIDETRACKS,   YARDS,   TERMINALS,   SIGNALS.         137 

incompetent.     This  led  to  the  use  of  methods  partly 
manual  and  partly  automatic. 

147.  Manual-automatic  Signaling. — In  this  method, 
after  the  operator  has  thrown  his  signal  to  danger,  a 
mechanical  contrivance  acts  in  such  a  way  that  it  is 
impossible  for  him  to  throw  his  signal  to  clear  until  the 
operator  in  the  next  tower  has  thrown  his  lever  to  danger. 
When  the  second  operator  throws  his  signal  to  danger, 
he  automatically,  by  means  of  an  electrical  device,  makes 
it  possible  for  the  first  operator  to  work  his  lever  so  that 
he  can  throw  his  signal  to  clear.     This  method  still 
leaves  a  possibility  of  danger,  but  it  is  far  less  than  when 
no  interlocking  device  is  used.     It  is  necessary  to  have 
towers  and  signals  partly  under  manual  control  at  all 
points  where  important  switches  must  be  thrown  or  at 
grade  railroad  crossings.     The  lever  that  operates  the 
switch  must  be  thrown  by  a  man,  but  there  are  various 
automatic  devices  that  guarantee  the  safety  of  the  train 
while  using  the  switch,  TJ  131. 

148.  Automatic    Signaling. — In    this    system    the 
signals  are  controlled  entirely  by  automatic  devices, 
and  it  is  used  for  greater  safety  on  stretches  of  track 
between  block  towers,  the  block  towers  in  this  case  being 
placed  only  at  points  where  an  operator  must  work 
switches,  etc.     They  are  worked  by  means  of  electric 
circuits   passing   through   the   rails.     This   system,   by 
means  of  placing  the  signals  comparatively  close  together, 
allows  a  greater  number  of  trains  to  be  run  with  a  min- 
imum amount  of  danger,  and  is  therefore  economical  on 
roads  with  very  heavy  passenger  traffic,   particularly 
at  certain  times  of  the  day.     It  is  much  cheaper  than 


138  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

putting  block  towers  at  the  same  distance  apart,  as  the 
pay  of  the  operator  would  be  greater  than  the  mainte- 
nance of  the  circuits.  Automatic  signals  are  entirely 
electric,  or  electro-pneumatic,  the  latter  being  compressed 
air  controlled  by  electric  devices. 

149.  Track  Circuits. — When  the  track  relay  is  en- 
ergized by,  a  current,  it  closes  a  local  circuit  and  sets  the 
signal  at  safety.  The  resistance  of  the  relay  is  such 
that  it  requires  nearly  the  whole  current  to  wTork  it  and 
to  keep  the  local  current  closed.  Therefore,  when  there 
is  any  considerable  loss  of  current  from  one  rail  to  the 
other,  the  relay  will  not  be  sufficiently  energized,  the  local 
current  will  be  broken,  and  the  signal  will  be  set  to  danger. 


.Signal  Battery 

FIG.  86. 

This  diversion  of  current  may  be  caused  by  the  passage  of 
a  pair  of  wheels,  the  breakage  of  a  rail,  etc.  Fig.  86 
represents  a  track  circuit,  signals  being  located  near  A 
and  B.  A  and  B  are  insulated  joints,  all  other  joints 
being  bonded,  and  the  rails  bonded  together  on  each 
side  of  the  insulated  joints.  When  there  is  no  train 
passing,  the  signal  magnet  is  sufficiently  energized  to  draw 
the  signals  to  safety;  when  a  train  passes  A,  the  current 
passes  through  the  wheels  and  axle,  causing  the  signal 
magnet  to  cease  to  act  and  the  signal  to  set  to  danger. 
When  the  train  passes  B,  the  signal  magnet  at  A  again 
acts  and  draws  the  signal  at  A  to  safety,  and  sets  the  sig- 
nal at  B  to  danger.  The  signals  are  counterweighted  so 


SIDETRACKS,   YARDS,   TERMINALS,   SIGNALS.         139 

that  they  swing  to  danger  when  no  force  acts  on  them, 
and  it  takes  a  force  to  pull  them  to  the  position  showing 
safety,  consequently  any  break  in  the  system  causes  the 
signals  automatically  to  show  danger. 

150.  Absolute  Blocking. — Blocking  is  of  two  kinds, 
viz.,  absolute  and  permissive.     In  the  absolute  system, 
when  a  signal  shows  danger,  or  red,  the  train  must  come 
to  a  dead  stop  with  no  part  of  it  beyond  the  signal,  and 
wait  until  it  gets  a  clear  signal.     In  the  days  before  the 
use  of  the  distant  signal  it  was  quite  a  common  occurrence 
for  a  train  to  round  a  curve  and  find  a  stop  signal  at 
such  a  short  distance  that  it  had  to  run  some  distance 
past  the  signal  before  it  could  stop,  and  then  to  back 
up  until  the  whole  train  was  on  the  proper  side  of  the 
signal.     This  not  only  caused  considerable  delay,  due 
to  the  time  necessary  to  get  up  full  speed  after  stopping, 
but  also  caused  considerable  expense  in  wear  and  damage 
to  the  track  and  train,  consequently  distant  signals  came 
into  use. 

151.  Permissive  Blocking. — In  this  method  a  train 
is  allowed  to  proceed  under  control  after  the  caution  sig- 
nal is  displayed,  and  although  the  train  must  stop  upon 
finding  a  danger  signal,  it  is  much  less  expensive  to  do  so 
when  running  at  a  moderate  rate  of  speed.     A  train 
running  at  60  miles  per  hour  can  not  be  brought  to  a  full 
stop  in  much  less  than  2000  feet  unless  the  engineman 
resorts  to  methods  that  are  very  injurious  to  both  his 
engine  and  the  track.     Consequently  caution,  or  distant, 
signals  are  placed  about  2000  feet  before  coming  to  each 
point  where  a  full-stop  signal  is  liable  to  be  displayed, 
such  as  a  block  tower,  etc.    Sometimes  on  roads  where 


140  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

only  one  signal  is  used  a  train  may  be  allowed  to  proceed 
after  the  operator  has  issued  a  card  allowing  it  to  do  so. 
The  permissive  method  of  blocking  is  shown  in  Fig.  87. 
The  train  B  following  the  train  A  finds  the  signal  as 
shown,  the  signals  C  stop  all  trains  following  B  absolutely, 
until  B  has  passed  D.  The  top  signal  when  horizontal 
shows  danger,  and  a  train  must  under  no  circumstances 
pass  it ;  the  lower  signal  when  horizontal  means  caution, 
and  the  train  B  must  proceed  under  control,  knowing 
that  there  is  a  train  in  the  second  block,  F  E,  ahead. 
When  both  signals  are  down,  as  at  F,  the  track  is  clear 
for  at  least  two  blocks  ahead,  and  the  train  A  may  pro- 

F  E  D  c 

IF    f*.   P 

FIG.  87. 

ceed  at  full  speed.  The  lower,  or  caution,  signal  in  this 
case  is  the  distant  signal,  and  on  a  road  with  heavy 
traffic  the  signals  may  be  at  a  distance  of  about  2000  feet 
apart,  or  even  less,  particularly  near  curves.  These 
signals  are  worked  by  a  double  arrangement  of  the  cir- 
cuits described  in  If  149. 

Signals  are  made  in  two  forms,  viz.,  semaphore  and 
banjo. 

152.  Semaphore  Signals. — Semaphore  signals  consist 
of  an  arm,  shown  in  Fig.  88,  which  is  fastened  to  an  up- 
right support  by  means  of  the  pivot  A.  The  arm  consists 
of  a  light  piece  of  board  about  five  feet  long,  ten  inches 
wide  at  the  outer  end,  and  seven  or  eight  inches  wide 


SIDETRACKS,   YARDS,   TERMINALS,   SIGNALS.         141 

at  the  inner  end,  where  it  is  fastened  to  a  cast-iron  arm 
plate.  The  arm  plate  contains  the  colored  glass  B, 
which  gives  the  signal  at  night,  and  the  whole  arrange- 
ment is  so  balanced  that  the  weight  of  the  iron  arm 
plate  will  hold  the  arm  in  a  horizontal  position,  if  left 
free  to  move  about  the  pivot  A.  Home,  or  danger,  signals 
have  a  square  end  to  the  arm,  but 
in  some  cases  distant,  or  caution, 
signals  are  notched  on  the  outer 
end  of  the  arm. 

In  daytime  a  horizontal  posi-  FIG.  88. 

tion  of  the  semaphore  arm  indi- 
cates danger  and  an  inclined  position  indicates  clear. 
At  night  the  signals  are  indicated  by  colored  lights. 
A  lamp  is  fastened  to  the  upright  which  holds  the  arms 
in  such  position  that  the  glass  B  of  the  proper  color 
comes  directly  over  the  lamp  causing  this  color  to  show. 
When  the  signal  is  set  at  clear,  only  the  color  of  the 
light  from  the  lamp  shows. 

153.  Banjo  Signals. — Banjo  signals  con- 
sist of  a  flat  box,  shaped  as  shown  in  Fig.  89. 
A  lamp  is  arranged  in  the  box  so  that  it  shines 
through  a  lens  of  normal  color  when  the  signal 
FiG~89        *s  se^  ^°  c^ear-     There  is  a  mechanism  by 
means  of  which  a  glass  of  the  proper  color 
may  be  moved  so  that  it  will  cover  the  light  and  show 
this  color  when  so  desired.     These  signals  are  mounted 
on  uprights  at  about  25  feet  from  the  ground  in  the  same 
general  way  as  semaphore  signals.     The  outer  part  of  the 
banjo  face  is  painted  white,  the  signal  showing  only  in  the 
center.     Signals  as  far  as  possible  are  placed  to  the 


142  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

right  of  the  track  and  away  from  all  other  lights  so  as 
to  avoid  confusion,  with  the  signal  facing  the  trains  on  the 
track  it  is  to  control.  The  backs  of  the  signals  are  usu- 
ally painted  white  with  a  red  or  black  cross-stripe  near 
the  outer  end  of  the  semaphore  arm,  thus  showing  clearly 
to  the  engineman  to  which  track  the  signal  belongs. 
The  faces  of  the  signals  toward  the  train  show  the  colors 
which  the  railroad  uses  to  indicate  the  condition  of  .the 
track. 

154.  Color  of  Signals. — The  colors  in  most  common 
use  for  signals  are  as  follows:  (1)  red,  for  danger  and 
stop;  (2)  green,  for  caution  and  run  under  control; 
and  (3)  white  or  yellow,  for  clear.  The  face  of  the  upper 
semaphore  arm  is  painted  red  and  has  a  red  glass  to  cover 
the  lamp.  The  face  of  the  lower  semaphore  arm  is 
painted  green  and  has  a  green  glass  to  cover  the  lamp,  and 
is  usually  notched,  or  fish-tailed,  on  the  outer  end.  The 
normal  color  of  the  lamp  is  usually  white,  but  some  roads 
have  adopted  yellow  as  the  clear  signal.  The  use  of  the 
yellow  signal  is  increasing  rapidly,  since  it  is  difficult  to 
distinguish  between  a  white  signal  light  and  an  ordinary 
light,  making  it  very  easy  to  mistake  an  ordinary  light 
for  a  signal.  In  case  the  red  or  green  signal  lens  is 
broken  out,  the  signal  will  show  white  instead  of  stop 
or  caution,  as  it  should  show. 

On  double-track  roads  the  lamps  are  made  so  that 
they  can  shine  in  only  one  direction,  so  that  they  cannot 
be  confusing  to  a  train  going  in  the  opposite  direction. 
On  single-track  roads  the  lamps  must  shine  in  both 
directions.  Signal  lights  must  be  placed  at  all  switches, 


SIDETRACKS,    YARDS,    TERMINALS,    SIGNALS.         143 

and  show  a  caution  signal  when  running  into  the  point 
of  a  closed  switch. 

On  January  1,  1908,  automatic  block  signals  were  in 
use  on  10,800  miles,  and  non-automatic  block  signals 
on  47,900  miles  of  railroad  in  the  United  States.  Of 
the  10,800  miles  of  automatic  signals,  2300  miles  were 
disc  (banjo)  signals,  and  8500  miles  were  semaphore 
signals. 


CHAPTER  V. 
MAINTENANCE  OF  WAY. 


ARTICLE  XIII. 

ORGANIZATION    OF    MAINTENANCE    OF    WAY 
FORCES. 

155.  Divisions  of  a  Railroad. — For  the  purpose  of 
maintenance  and  operation,  large  railroad  systems  are 
divided  into  " grand  divisions"  and  "divisions."  A 
grand  division  usually  consists  of  a  trunk  line  several 
hundred  miles  long,  together  with  all  its  branch  lines, 
and  is  in  charge  of  a  general  superintendent,  who-re- 
ports  to  a  higher  officer,  usually  the  general  manager  of 
the  system. 

A  grand  division  is  usually  divided  into  two  or  more 
divisions,  each  in  charge  of  a  superintendent.  Divisions 
are  made  of  such  length  that  the  mileage  and  work  of  the 
locomotives  and  trainmen  will  be  the  most  economical, 
so  that  a  round  trip  shall  comprise  a  day's  work.  Train- 
men and  locomotives  do  not  go  off  of  their  division,  con- 
sequently the  train  crew  changes  and  a  new  locomotive 
is  attached  to  a  through  train  at  the  end  of  each  division. 
Divisions  are  in  charge  of  a  division  superintendent,  who 
reports  to  the  general  superintendent.  The  division 

144 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY.  145 

superintendent   is   responsible  for    the    operation   and 
maintenance  of  his  division. 

156.  Subdivisions. — The  maintenance  of  track  and 
all  engineering  structures  of  a  railroad  is  called  "main- 
tenance of  way,"  and  is  usually  referred  to  as  "M.  W." 
The  maintenance  work  on  a  division  is  in  charge  of  a 
division  engineer,   called  on  some  railroads  "assistant 
engineer,"  who  reports  to  the  superintendent.     Main- 
tenance of  way  may  be  divided  into  three  general  head- 
ings, viz.,  track,  signals,  and  structures.     The  signals  of 
a  division  may  be  in  charge  of  an  assistant  engineer  of 
signals,  who  reports  to  the  signal  engineer,  who  has 
charge  of  the  entire  signal  system  of  a  railroad,  or  they 
may  be  in  charge  of  a  supervisor  of  signals,  who  reports 
to  the  assistant  engineer. 

The  maintenance  of  structures,  which  includes  all 
bridges,  buildings,  road  crossings,  fences,  etc.,  is  in 
charge  of  a  master  carpenter,  who  reports  to  the  assist- 
ant engineer.  In  some  cases  the  supervisor  of  signals 
reports  to  the  master  carpenter. 

For  the  purpose  of  maintaining  the  track,  the  division 
is  divided  into  a  number  of  subdivisions,  each  in  charge 
of  a  supervisor,  who  reports  to  the  assistant  engineer. 
On  some  railroads  track  maintenance  is  hi  charge  of  a 
roadmaster;  in  which  case  the  track  department  may 
be  entirely  separate  from  the  engineering  department. 

157.  Sections. — Subdivisions  are  further  divided  hi  to 
sections,  each  of  which  is  in  charge  of  a  track  foreman, 
who  reports  to  the  supervisor.     The  proper  length  of  the 
section  depends  upon  the  amount  of  traffic,  kind  of 
ballast,  condition  of  roadbed,  number  of  tracks,  and  the 

10 


146  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

general  requirements  as  to  excellence  of  track.  On  a 
single-track  railroad  with  heavy  traffic  the  sections 
should  be  about  four  miles  long,  while  for  light  traffic 
they  are  sometimes  ten  miles  long. 

The  amount  of  work  necessary  to  keep  a  double-track 
road  in  good  condition  is  less  than  double  that  required 
for  a  single-track  line  under  the  same  general  conditions. 
In  both  cases  the  same  amount  of  work  is  required  in 
maintaining  ditches  and  fences  and  in  keeping  the  grass 
cut  and  the  part  of  the  right-of-way  not  covered  by  the 
track  in  good  shape.  The  surfacing  of  double  track  is 
less  than  twice  that  of  single  track,  and  is  much  safer, 
because  the  men  need  watch  for  a  train  from  only  one 
direction.  For  these  reasons  sections  on  double-track 
roads  with  heavy  traffic  should  be  about  three  miles 
long.  In  yards  the  sections  are,  of  course,  much 
shorter. 

158.  Track  Gang. — The  size  of  the  track  gang  de- 
pends upon  the  same  conditions  as  given  above  for  the 
length  of  section;  in  fact,  the  size  of  the  track  gang 
depends  upon  the  length  of  the  section,  the  traffic,  etc., 
and  vice  versa.  A  rule  sometimes  stated  is  that  there 
shall  be  a  minimum  of  one  man  per  mile  of  single  track 
in  addition  to  the  foreman  and  trackwalker.  As  a 
usual  thing  very  little  track  work  can  be  done  in  winter, 
and  to  a  certain  extent,  at  least,  the  track  will  need  a 
spring  overhauling,  which  may  require  a  gang  of  twelve 
or  fifteen  men.  Crossties  are  renewed  between  spring 
and  fall.  It  is  customary  to  have  at  least  a  foreman, 
an  assistant  foreman,  and  not  less  than  one  additional 
man,  making  three  men  in  all,  permanently,  and  to  take 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY.  147 

on  men  temporarily  when  needed.  A  permanent  force 
is  far  more  efficient  than  one  that  is  composed  prin- 
cipally of  temporary  men.  Except  in  special  cases,  due 
to  accident,  railroad  rails  are  laid  in  long  stretches  by  the 
main tenance-of- way  train  gang  and  not  by  the  regular 
track  gang.  Crossties,  on  the  other  hand,  decay  and 
wear  out  so  irregularly  that  they  are  replaced  at  odd 
intervals  by  the  regular  track  gang. 

159.  Track  Foreman. — The  track  foreman  has  charge 
of  all  the  maintenance  work  on  his  section,  subject  to 
the  orders  of  the  supervisor.  He  hires  and  discharges 
the  other  trackmen  when  so  directed,  receipts  for  all 
new  tools  and  materials  received,  makes  requisition  for 
necessary  tools  and  materials,  directs  and  keeps  the 
time  of  the  men,  has  charge  of  all  track-signalmen,  and 
sends  his  time  book  to  the  supervisor  at  the  end  of  the 
month  so  that  the  pay-roll  can  be  made  up.  He  has  an 
assistant  foreman,  who  takes  the  place  of  the  foreman  in 
his  absence  and  also  takes  charge  of  part  of  the  gang  when 
it  is  necessary  to  divide  it  and  work  at  different  places, 
but  does  the  work  of  an  ordinary  trackman  when  oc- 
casion requires.  It  takes  long  experience  and  training 
to  make  a  good  foreman ;  he  is  responsible  for  the  surface 
and  alinement  of  track,  and  must  be  thoroughly  familiar 
with  track  work.  He  is  also  responsible  for  the  safety 
of  the  men  and  also  trains,  and  must  see  that  a  flagman 
is  stationed  so  that  the  men  will  have  plenty  of  time  to 
get  out  of  the  way  of  approaching  trains,  and  also  so  that 
the  train  may  be  stopped  in  case  he  has  the  track  in 
such  shape  that  it  is  unsafe,  which  must  never  happen, 
however,  except  when  the  foreman  has  received  special 


148  RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

orders  to  do  so,  these  orders  being  given  in  special  cases 
only. 

160.  Trackwalker.— The  duties  of  a .  trackwalker 
and  the  number  of  trackwalkers  per  section  depend  upon 
the  importance  and  amount  of  traffic  passing  over  the 
track  to  be  inspected.  On  a  light  traffic  road  where 
there  is  no  liability  to  landslides,  bridges  to  get  out  of 
order,  and  the  weather  is  dry  so  that  there  can  be  no 
washouts,  the  trackwalker  may  be  detailed  from  the 
track  gang  to  walk  over  the  track  in  the  forenoon  and 
rejoin  the  gang  in  the  afternoon.  But  if  there  are 
dangerous  spots  on  the  section,  or  there  is  considerable 
rain,  so  that  landslides  may  be  expected,  the  trackwalker 
should  patrol  his  section  constantly,  and  during  such 
times  a  night  trackwalker  should  also  be  placed  on  the 
section ;  and  if  there  is  a  particularly  bad  spot,  such  as  a 
cut  with  slopes  of  doubtful  stability,  a  special  watchman 
should  be  stationed  there. 

The  day  trackwalker  carries  a  wrench,  a  light  hammer, 
a  few  extra  bolts,  nut  locks  and  spikes,  and  a  flag.  He 
should  carefully  inspect  the  track,  particularly  all 
switch  connections,  and  see  that  there  are  no  signs  of 
fire  near  a  bridge.  He  should  tighten  up  all  loose  bolts 
and  drive  down  spikes  that  have  worked  up.  An  ex- 
perienced trackwalker  can  in  most  cases  tell  at  a  glance 
whether  or  not  a  joint  is  loose;  if  he  is  in  doubt,  a  tap 
with  the  hammer  will  show  its  condition.  In  winter  he 
must  keep  snow  and  ice  from  packing  hard  about 
switches,  frogs,  guard  rails,  and  crossings.  In  order  to  be 
an  efficient  trackwalker  a  man  should  have  served  on 
the  track  gang  until  he  is  thoroughly  familiar  with  track 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY.  149 

work  and  has  proved  himself  careful  and  reliable.  The 
night  trackwalker  makes  such  inspection  as  is  possible 
by  lantern  light,  usually  inspects  the  track  ahead  of  the 
fast  passenger  trains,  and  carries  torpedoes,  in  addition 
to  his  lantern,  for  signaling  purposes. 


ARTICLE  XIV. 
SECTION  TOOLS  AND  OUTFIT. 

161.  Section  Tool  House. — In  order  to  properly 
take  care  of  the  tools  and  outfit,  there  should  be  a  tool 
house  on  each  section.  The  manner  of  housing  tools 
varies  from  a  large  box  that  can  be  locked,  to  an  espe- 
cially designed  house  in  which  the  tools  can  be  stored 
properly.  The  tool  house  should  be  large  enough  and  so 
arranged  that  each  kind  of  tool  has  its  regular  place,  and 
there  should  be  separate  places  for  each  kind  of  track 
material,  such  as  bolts,  splices,  spikes,  etc.,  otherwise 
tools  will  be  thrown  into  a  heap,  possibly  some  of  them 
broken,  and  there  will  be  endless  delay  and  confusion  in 
finding  the  particular  tool  or  track  material  required. 
The  tool  house  should  also  be  large  enough  to  serve  as  a 
workshop  and  to  allow  the  permanent  men  to  make  such 
repairs  as  possible  to  tools  on  days  that  are  too  stormy 
for  outside  work.  At  times  it  is  necessary  to  hold  the  men 
at  the  tool  house  in  readiness  for  anticipated  trouble,  such 
as  heavy  snow-storms,  in  which  case  it  should  be  possible 
to  heat  the  house  by  some  simply  constructed  stove. 


150 


RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


In  some  cases  the  tool  house  is  a  plain  rectangular 
shed  about  9  by  12  feet  and  7  feet  high,  made  of  inch 
boards  and  covered  with  a  pitched  roof  of  corrugated 
iron,  and  without  windows.  A  tool  house  of  this  de- 
scription is  poor  economy,  as  it  serves  simply  to  pile  the 
tools  together  and  lock  them  up.  In  Fig.  90  are  shown 
the  outlines  of  the  plan,  elevation,  and  end  view  of  a 
tool  house.  It  is  10  feet  high  "to  the  square, " which 
gives  a  garret  in  which  surplus  tools  and  materials  can  be 
stored.  The  stairs  A  may  be  placed  in  any  convenient 


nil 


END 


PLAN 


FIG.  90. 

location ;  in  the  figure  they  are  so  placed  that  the  hand- 
car can  run  under  the  stairs.  While  the  dimensions  of 
this  tool  house  are  not  very  large,  there  is  a  fair  amount 
of  space  for  assorting  tools  and  materials  and  placing 
them  separately.  The  long  dimension  is  placed  parallel 
to  the  track,  and  a  runway  is  constructed  of  old  rails  or 
3-  by  4-inch  timbers  upon  which  the  hand-car  can  be 
handled.  The  house  is  lighted,  can  be  heated  by  a 
small  stove,  and  has  a  small  amount  of  room  to  be  used 
as  a  workshop. 

162.  Section    Houses. — The    headquarters    of    the 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY.  151 

track  gang  should  be  located  with  regard  to  both  cover- 
ing the  section  quickly  and  accessibility  from  the  divi- 
sion headquarters.  The  most  desirable  location  is  at 
the  center  of  the  section  near  a  telegraph  office,  and  the 
tool  house  should  also  be  so  located.  It  is  necessary 
that  the  foreman,  at  least,  should  reside  at  this  point,  so 
that  he  can  receive  orders  at  any  hour  of  the  day  or 
night,  and  he  should  also  be  able  to  reach  some  of  his 
men  on  hort  notice.  For  this  reason  many  railroads 
provide  their  section  foreman  with  a  residence,  called  the 
section  house,  at  this  point.  It  is  not  necessary  to  give 
plans  of  a  section  house.  Each*  railroad  has  standard 
plans  upon  which  such  buildings  are  erected.  In  some 
sections  of  the  country  where  there  are  few  inhabitants 
and  the  different  members  of  the  track  would  otherwise 
live  widely  scattered,  it  will  be  economy  for  the  railroad 
to  provide  houses  for  all  the  men.  Often  this  arrange- 
ment is  economical  for  both  the  company  and  the  men. 
The  railroad  has  the  men  where  they  are  always  ready 
for  service  and  can  charge  them  a  rental  which  will  pay 
the  interest  on  the  money  invested,  and  the  men  get  a 
better  house  for  the  money  than  they  can  rent  in  any 
other  way. 

163.  Tools. — Each  section  should  have  enough  tools 
to  supply  every  man  in  the  gang  with  an  outfit  for  each 
kind  of  work  that  is  required  on  the  section,  and  enough 
extra  tools  to  allow  some  to  be  away  at  the  repair  shop. 
At  the  supervisor's  headquarters  of  the  subdivision  all 
track  tools  should  be  carried  in  stock,  both  to  replace 
worn-out  tools  and  also  to  equip  an  extra  force  in  case  of 
emergency,  such  as  a  washout  or  wreck.  The  follow- 


152 


RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


ing  is  taken  from  the  standards  of  the  N.  Y.  C.  and 
H.  R.  R.  R: 

TABLE  XVII. 


TOOLS. 

YARD. 

SINGLE 
TRACK. 

DOUBLE 
TRACK. 

FOUR 
TRACK. 

Hammers  Spiking 

6 

4 

4 

4 

"           Nail          

1 

1 

1 

1 

"           Napping  *.  . 

2 

2 

2 

4 

Bars  Claw 

4 

3 

3 

4 

"      Lining                       .    .  . 

7 

6 

8 

8 

"      Pinch                  

1 

1 

1 

1 

"      Tamping  ? 

8 

6 

8 

8 

Picks  Clay 

10 

4 

6 

8 

"      Tamping  * 

6 

6 

10 

10 

Shovels,  Long  Handle  
"         Scoop  

2 
6 

2 

9 

2 
2 

2 
2 

"         Snow  

6 

6 

6 

6 

Short  Handle  

6 

6 

6 

6 

Forks  Ballast  *  

6 

6 

8 

10 

Wrenches  Track           

6 

4 

4 

4 

"         Screw  

2 

1 

1 

1 

Axes  Common 

1 

1 

1 

1 

"      Hand... 

2 

2 

2 

2 

Adzes  ...    . 

2 

2 

2 

2 

f    Red  
Signal  Flags  \    Green 

2 
2 

4 
4 

4 
4 

4 
4 

[    White 

2 

2 

2 

2 

"       Lanterns  

2 

2 

2 

2 

*  Used  with  stone  ballast. 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY.  153 

In  addition  to  the  above,  the  following  list  of  mis- 
cellaneous tools  is  needed  on  all  sections,  regardless  of 
the  kind  of  track  or  ballast: 

1  Hand-car  2  Wheelbarrows 

1  Push-car  4  Brooms 

2  Track  jacks  2  Oil-cans 

2  Track  gauges  2  Post-hole  diggers 

4  Rail  tongs  1  Grindstone 

2  Brush  hooks  1  Switch  key 

Scythes  and  snaths  1  50-foot  tape 

1  Level  board  1  Ditching  line 

1  Spike  puller  1  Water  pail  and  dipper 

1  Sighting  board  2  Hay-rakes 

6  Track  chisels  3  Grubbing  hoes 

1  Ratchet  drill  and  4  bits  1  Cross-cut  saw 

1  Sledge-hammer  1  Rail  fork 
1  Carpenter's  kit 

The  above  table  and  list  show  the  tools  with  which 
each  track  gang  is  supposed  to  be  supplied ;  every  article 
mentioned  will  be  needed  in  the  ordinary  work  of  the 
track  gang.  In  addition  to  the  above  tools  there  are  a 
number  which  will  be  needed  occasionally,  but  which 
are  not  absolutely  necessary  on  each  and  every  section, 
such  as  rail  benders,  etc.  If  the  section  has  a  rock  cut 
with  unstable  slopes  from  which  rock  may  slide  on  the 
track,  a  complete  drilling  and  blasting  outfit  should  also 
be  added.  These  tools  must  all  be  stored  in  the  section 
tool  house,  which  shows  the  necessity  for  a  tool  house  of 
ample  size. 

164.  Spiking  Hammers.— In  table  XVII  three  kinds 
of  hammers  are  given  as  necessary  on  each  section,  viz., 
spiking  and  nail  hammers  on  all  sections,  and  napping 
hammers  in  addition  for  stone  ballast. 

A  spiking  hammer,  sometimes  called  a  spike  maul, 
is  shown  in  Fig.  91,  A.  It  is  square  in  section  near  the 


154 


RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


center,  octagonal  (square  with  the  corners  beveled  off) 
in  section  toward  the  ends,  and  circular  on  the  ends,  or 
striking  faces.  The  hammer  shown  is  13J  inches  in 
length  and  2  inches  square  at  the  center,  one  side  of  the 
hammer  being  6|  inches  long  and  -J-  inch  in  diameter  at 
the  end  for  spiking  in  narrow  confines,  such  as  between 
the  guard  rail  and  the  main  rail,  the  other  side  of  the 
hammer  being  6|  inches  long  and  If  inches  in  diameter 
at  the  end.  The  edges  of  the  ends  are  beveled  off  so  that 
the  cross-section  of  the  ends  is  circular,  to  prevent  pieces 
from  chipping  from  the  spiking  ends  after  considerable 


use.  An  oval-shaped  hole,  1 J  by  -J  inches,  extends  en- 
tirely through  the  head,  and  a  hickory  handle,  3  feet 
4  inches  long,  is  fastened  in  it  by  means  of  a  wedge.  A 
spiking  hammer  of  this  size  weighs  ten  pounds  and  is 
made  of  steel  of  such  hardness  on  the  ends  as  will  best 
stand  the  work  required.  If  it  is  too  soft,  it  will  batter 
out  of  shape ;  or  if  it  is  too  hard,  pieces  of  metal  will  break 
from  the  head — either  fault  quickly  rendering  the  ham- 
mer useless. 

The  nail  hammer  mentioned  is  an  ordinary  carpenter's 
claw-hammer,  and  is  used  in  repairing  fences  and  all 
work  in  which  nails  of  ordinary  size  are  used. 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY.  155 

165.  Napping    Hammers. — Napping    hammers    are 
used  to  break  pieces  of  stone,  or  spalls,  into  the  proper 
size  for  ballast.     They  should  not  be  too  heavy;    the 
weight  of  the  standard  hammer  shown  in  Fig.  91,  B,  is 
3^  pounds.     It  is  symmetrical  in  form,  5  inches  long,  2 
inches  square  at  the  center,  and  circular  ends  -J-  inch  in 
diameter.      The   cross-section   toward   the  ends  is  oc- 
tagonal, the  same  as  in  the  spiking  hammer.     It  is  made 
of  steel  with  the  same  requirements  for  hardness  as  a 
spiking  hammer,  and  is  attached  to  the  same  kind  of 
handle. 

1 66.  Sledge    Hammers. — A    sledge-hammer,     men- 
tioned among  the  miscellaneous  tools,  is  used  for  various 
purposes  where  a  heavy  hammer  is  necessary,  such  as 
breaking  up  large  rocks  and  for  cutting  rails  into  special 
lengths  with  the  aid  of  track  chisels.     Sledge-hammers 
are  made  in  two  general  shapes  and  weigh  from  6  to  30 
pounds.     The   sledge-hammer   shown  in  Fig.  91,  C,  is 
symmetrical  in  shape,  8|  inches  long,  3J  inches  square 
at  the  middle,  3J  inches  in  diameter  at  the  ends,  octag- 
onal in  shape  for  intermediate  sections,  as  shown  in  the 
end  view,  and  weighs  25  pounds.      The  larger  sledge- 
hammers have  an  oval  hole,  or  eye,  extending,  through 
the  head,  by  means  of  which  they  are  attached  to  the 
handle,  which  is  usually  3  feet  long.     The  other  form  of 
sledge-hammer  has  one-half  of  the  head  formed  as  shown 
in  Fig.  91,  C,  but  the  other  half  of  the  head  is  shaped  like 
a  wedge,   with  a  rounded  blunt  point,  and  is  enough 
longer  to  give  the  same  total  weight  to  the  hammer. 
This  latter  form  is  most  convenient  for  breaking  large 
rocks. 


156 


RAILROAD   TRACK   AND    CONSTRUCTION. 


The  sledge-hammer  in  general  use  usually  weighs  12 
or  14  pounds,  has  one  of  the  two  shapes  described  above, 
with  the  dimensions  varied  accordingly.  They  are  made 
of  steel  with  the  same  qualities  as  for  spiking  and  napping 
hammers. 

167.  Claw  Bars. — In  table  XVII  four  classes  of  bars 
are  given  as  essential  on  all  sections,  viz.,  claw,  lining, 
pinch,  and  tamping  bars. 

A  claw  bar  *  is  shown  in  Fig.  92.  The  claw  is  4|- 
inches  long,  2-J  inches  wide  at  the  widest  part,  is  curved 


FIG.  92. 

upward  so  that  the  point  is  4J  inches  above  the  back  of 
the  bar,  and  has  an  opening  -j-|  inch  wide  and  2-J  inches 
long  in  the  clear.  The  bar  is  two  inches  square  for  a 
distance  of  2-|  inches,  and  in  the  next  2  inches  changes  to 
the  octagonal  form  shown  in  section  C  D.  The  octag- 
onal part  is  14  inches  long  and  then  changes  to  the 
circular  cross-section  shown  in  section  E  F.  The  balance 
of  the  bar  is  circular  in  cross-section  and  tapers  down  to 
a  diameter  of  1J  inches  and  has  a  wedge-shaped  end  2\ 
inches  long.  The  total  length  of  the  bar  is  5  feet,  and  it 

*  P.  R.  R.    Standard  claw  bar. 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY.  157 

weighs  about  30  pounds.  The  bar  described  above  is 
heavier  than  the  bar  used  as  a  standard  on  some  other 
railroads,  the  usual  weight  being  about  25  pounds,  the 
lower  part  being  1}  inches  square,  and  the  other  dimen- 
sions, except  the  length,  being  correspondingly  less. 
Claw  bars  are  made  of  steel.  In  some  cases  the  back  of 
the  claw  is  made  thicker,  as  indicated  by  the  dotted  line 
in  Fig.  92,  in  which  case  they  are  called  goose-neck  bars. 

In  pulling  a  spike  that  holds  firmly,  it  is  customary  to 
first  strike  the  spike  vertically  on  the  head  with  a  spik- 
ing hammer  to  destroy  any  bond  between  the  spike  and 
the  tie  due  to  rust.  The  bar  is  then  held  in  a  nearly 
vertical  position  and  the  claw  forced  around  the  head  of 
the  spike.  It  is  often  difficult  to  get  the  claw  to  take 
hold  of  the  spike.  Sometimes  this  can  be  aided  by  first 
using  the  other  end  of  the  bar,  or  by  driving  the  claw  and 
the  head  of  the  spike  by  hitting  the  back  of  the  bar  with 
a  spiking  hammer.  After  the  claw  takes  hold  the  spike 
is  drawn  by  pulling  the  bar  into  a  horizontal  position. 
Where  there  is  much  pulling  to  be  done,  it  is  sometimes 
economical  to  have  a  nearly  straight  claw  bar  with  the 
other  end  square  with  which  to  start  the  spikes.  The 
straight  bar  can  be  held  in  position  and  driven  under 
the  spike  and  then,  by  pulling  the  straight  bar  to  a  hori- 
zontal position,  using  a  piece  of  wood  or  a  spike  as  a 
fulcrum,  the  spike  will  be  moved  enough  to  allow  the 
goose-necked  bar  to  be  used.  Steel  is  usually  relaid  by 
the  construction  train  force,  which  usually  has  one  or 
more  patent  devices  for  pulling  spikes. 

1 68.  Lining  Bars. — Lining  bars  are  used  for  throw- 
ing track  into  line  laterally.  They  have  a  symmetrical 


158  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

pyramid  or  wedge-shaped  end.  This  end  of  the  bar 
is  driven  into  the  ballast,  forming  a  fulcrum,  the  bar 
being  in  a  slanting  position  resting  against  the  base  of 
the  rail.  A  number  of  bars  being  properly  placed,  with 
one  or  two  men  to  each  bar,  the  word  being  given,  all 
heave  together  and  throw  the  track  laterally.  The 
ballast  is  first  partially  removed  from  around  the  ties. 
The  lining  bar  shown  in  Fig.  93  is  5  feet  4  inches  long, 
made  of  steel,  and  weighs  24  pounds.  It  has  a  square 
pyramid,  or  diamond,  point,  2|  inches  long,  the  lower 
part  of  the  bar  is  1}  inches  square  for  1^  feet,  the  middle 
of  the  bar  is  octagonal  for  li  feet,  and  the  upper  2J  feet 
of  the  bar  is  round  and  f  inch  hi  diameter  at  the  end. 


FIG.  93. 

It  is  found  that  bars  with  points  shaped  as  described 
above  give  the  best  hold;  it  is  therefore  more  econom- 
ical to  have  these  special  bars  for  lining  track  than  to 
use  some  of  •  the  other  bars,  although  pinch  bars  are 
sometimes  used  for  lining  track. 

169.  Pinch  Bars. — There  is  hardly  any  part  of  track 
work  in  which  pinch  bars  are  not  used;  in  some  cases 
they  give  a  better  hold  and  make  a  better  bar  for  lining 
purposes  than  the  regular  diamond-pointed  lining  bar. 
With  the  exception  of  the  point,  the  pinch  bar  has  the 
same  general  shape  as  the  lining  bar,  is  made  of  steel, 
and  weighs  24  pounds.  The  point  of  the  pinch  bar,  Fig. 
94,  is  2J  inches  long  and  wedge-shaped.  The  lower  part 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY. 


159 


of  the  bar  is  li  inches  square  for  a  distance  of  1  foot,  the 
middle  is  1J  inches  octagonal  for  1 J  feet,  and  the  upper 
part  is  round,  tapering  down  to  a  diameter  of  -J  of  an  inch 
at  the  end.  Pinch  bars  are  made  with  the  straight 
chisel  point  shown,  or  with  the  point  slightly  curved  up 
so  as  to  give  more  of  a  fulcrum  when 
prying. 

In  proportioning  any  of  the  above 
bars  they  are  made  as  short  as  con- 
sistent with  good  leverage  and  as 
light  as  possible  and  still  withstand  FIG.  94. 

the  force  applied.  Many  different 
proportions  are  used,  some  being  as  short  as  4f  feet  and 
weighing  20  pounds.  While  there  should  not  be  any  un- 
necessary weight,  it  would  not  be  economical  to  make 
them  so  light  that  they  would  bend  under  ordinary  use. 
170.  Tamping  Bars. — Tamping  bars  consist  of  a 
plain  bar  to  which  is  fastened  a  rectangular  piece  of 
soft  steel,  and  are  used  to  tamp  ballast  under  the  ties. 

Tamping  bars  should  not  be 
too  heavy,  as  a  heavy  bar 
would  not  only  be  hard  to 
handle  continuously,  but  will 
not  do  any  better  work  than 
a  bar  of  the  proper  weight. 

In  Fig.  95  is  shown  one  of  the  simplest  forms  of  tamping 
bars.  It  consists  of  a  piece  of  soft  steel,  3  by  3  by  J  inch, 
welded  to  a  5-foot  bar  of  f  inch  round  steel,  the  whole  bar 
being  5J  feet  long  and  weighing  about  10  pounds.  There 
are  a  number  of  patented  forms  of  tamping  bars,  the 
principal  object  being  to  give  a  better  hand  hold.  The 


FIG.  95. 


160 


RAILROAD   TRACK   AND    CONSTRUCTION. 


f-inch  handle  described  above  is  so  small  that  it  is  diffi- 
cult to  control  the  bar.  Some  railroads  do  not  use 
tamping  bars  at  all,  dirt  or  gravel  ballast  being  tamped 
with  shovels,  and  stone  ballast  with  tamping  picks. 

171.  Picks. — Clay  picks  have  one  chisel  point  and 
one  diamond  point  and  are  shaped  as  shown  in  Fig.  96. 
They  are  made  of  soft  steel,  and  after  they  have  become 
worn  and  dulled  they  are  drawn  out  and  reshaped  by  a 
blacksmith.  The  hole  for  the  handle  is  larger  on  the 
convex  side  of  the  pick;  the  handle  is  held  in  place  by 
having  it  fit  snugly  in  the  hole  and  by  holding  the  handle 
in  a  vertical  position  with  the  pick  head  down  and  by 


FIG.  96. 

striking  it  a  couple  of  sharp  blows  on  some  firm  surface. 
To  remove  the  handle  from  the  pick  for  repairs,  hold  on 
to  the  pick  and  strike  the  handle  a  blow  on  a  firm  surface ; 
this  loosens  the  handle,  and  it  is  pulled  through  the  eye 
of  the  pick. 

A  tamping  pick  is  shaped  like  a  clay  pick  except  the 
chisel  end  is  made  shorter  arid  the  chisel  is  replaced  by  a 
rectangular  piece  of  soft  steel,  2  by  j  inches  in  cross- 
section,  similar  to  the  end  of  a  tamping  bar. 

172.  Shovels. — Four  kinds  of  shovels  are  mentioned 
in  table  XVII,  viz.,  long-handle,  scoop,  snow,  and 
short-handle  shovels.  The  long-handle  shovel  consists 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY.  161 

of  a  wooden  handle  1J  inches  in  diameter,  which  is 
fastened  to  a  steel  blade  in  the  same  manner  as  the  short- 
handle  shovel  in  Fig.  97.  The  blades  are  made  in  two 
forms,  viz.,  square,  as  shown  hi  Fig.  97a,  and  pointed, 
as  in  Fig.  976.  The  handle  is  straight,  except  near  the 
blade,  as  shown  in  the  figure;  the  curve  in  the  lower  part 


FIG.  97a. 

of  the  handle  causes  the  handle  to  set  at  such  an  angle 
to  the  blade  that  when  the  back  of  the  blade  lies  hori- 
zontally on  the  ground,  the  upper  end  of  the  handle  is  at 
such  a  height  from  the  ground  that  a  man  can  throw  his 
weight  against  the  shovel  when  digging.  The  blades  are 
about  12  inches  long  and  9J  or  10  inches  wide.  Long- 


FIG.  976. 

handle  shovels  are  used  in  digging  holes  and  narrow 
ditches. 

Scoop  shovels  consist  of  a  square-pointed  blade  about 
12  inches  wide,  13  or  14  inches  long,  and  scoop  shaped  to 
a  depth  of  3  inches,  the  blade  being  attached  to  a  short 
wooden  handle  with  a  grip  on  the  end,  as  in  Fig.  97. 
The  end  grip  on  the.  shovel  handle,  Fig.  97,  has  an  -open- 
11 


162  RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

ing  large  enough  to  allow  the.  workman  to  place  all  four 
fingers  through  it.  These  grips  are  either  made  out  of 
the  same  piece  of  wood  as  the  rest  of  the  handle,  or  con- 
sist of  a  malleable  iron  casting  which  is  fastened  to  the 
straight  part  of  the  wooden  handle.  Scoop  shovels  are 
used  to  handle  large  quantities  of  light  material,  such  as 
ashes,  cinders,  or  snow. 

Snow  shovels  are  usually  made  of  wood  shod  with 
iron,  and  are  of  so  many  sizes  and  descriptions  and  so 
familiar  to  all  that  no  detailed  description  will  be  given. 

Short-handle  shovels  are  used  more  than  any  other 
track  implement.  They  have  a  blade  about  12  inches 
long  and  9^  or  10  inches  wide,  and  a  short  wooden  handle 
with  a  grip  on  the  end,  and  are  slightly  scoop  shaped. 
The  blades  are  either  square  pointed,  Fig.  97a,  or  round 
pointed,  Fig.  976.  The  handle  near  the  blade  is  curved 
in  the  same  manner  as  in  the  long-handle  shovel,  and 
when  the  back  of  the  blade  is  flat  on  the  ground,  the  grip 
end  of  the  handle  is  about  18  inches  above  the  ground, 
which  allows  the  workman  to  push  it  with  the  side  of  the 
leg  at  the  height  of  the  knee.  The  square-pointed  short- 
handle  shovel,  Fig.  97a,  universally  known  among  rail- 
road men  as  a  "No.  2  shovel,"  is  one  of  the  most  used 
railroad  implements;  in  construction  work  it  divides 
honors  with  the  clay  pick.  On  track  work  it  is  not  only 
used  for  all  shoveling  purposes,  but  also  for  tamping 
the  track,  more  miles  of  track  being  tamped  with  the 
shovel  than  with  tamping  bars  and  picks. 

Shovels  wear  out  by  the  blade  wearing  thin  and  the 
metal  breaking  at  the  point  of  the  blade.  After  the 
blade  wears  thin  it  will  bend  easily,  even  if  it  will  not 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY. 


163 


break,  and  it  is  a  common  sight  to  see  a  workman  using 
the  rail  for  an  anvil  and  straightening  the  point  of  his 
shovel  with  a  spiking  hammer.  Shovel  handles  are 
usually  riveted  fast  to  the  blade,  but  there  are  a  number 
of  patent  handles  in  which  the  parts  may  be  replaced. 
Except  in  case  of  accident  or  carelessness,  the  handle  will 
always  outlast  the  blade,  consequently  it  is  not  econom- 
ical to  use  an  expensive  patent  handle. 

173.  Ballast   Forks.— A   fourteen-tine    ballast   fork 
is  shown  in  Fig.  98.    The  tines  are  13J  inches  long,  and  at 


J_ 


FIG.  98. 


the  point  are  T3g-  of  an  inch  wide  and  -f^  of  an  inch  wide  at 
the  upper  end,  f  of  a  inch  thick,  and  have  wedge-shaped 
points.  When  the  space  between  the  points  is  f  of  an 
inch,  the  total  width  is  12f  inches.  The  handle  is  the 
same  as  the  handle  of  a  short-handle  or  scoop  shovel. 
Under  some  circumstances  ballast  is  handled  with  a 
No.  2  shovel,  but  when  fine  material  and  dirt  are  to  be 
excluded,  which  is  in  most  cases,  a  ballast  fork  is  used. 

174.  Wrenches. — Two   wrenches   are   given    in    the 
table,  viz.,  track  and  screw  wrenches.     A  screw  wrench 


164 


RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


is  one  that  can  be  adjusted  to  any  size  nut.  They  are 
of  two  general  forms,  viz.,  pipe-wrenches,  for  gripping 
round  surfaces,  and  monkey-wrenches,  for  gripping  nuts 
with  plane  surfaces.  These  forms  of  wrenches  are  used 
by  trackmen  only  in  special  cases. 

Track  wrenches  consist  of  a  straight  bar  of  f  by  IJ-inch 
steel,  with  one  end  upset  and  formed  as  in  Fig.  99.  When 
bolts  of  the  same  size  are  used  in  all  the  rail-joints  on 
the  section,  the  wrench  has  a  grip  on  only  one  end ;  but 
if  bolts  of  two  different  sizes  are  used,  it  is  better  to  have 
each  end  of  the  wrench  with  a  grip,  so  that  the  same 


FIG.  99. 

wrench  will  fit  both  sizes.  The  diameter  of  the  bolt  is 
stamped  plainly  on  the  head  of  the  wrench;  Fig.  99 
shows  a  wrench  for  a  1-inch  bolt,  the  grip  being  ly|- 
inches  for  the  nut.  There  is  liable  to  be  a  slight  variation 
in  the  size  of  nuts  for  bolts  of  the  same  size,  and  the  grip 
of  the  wrench  should  be  large  enough  to  take  hold  of  all 
the  nuts  for  which  it  is  intended.  The  wrench  shown  is 
33  inches  long  and  has  the  narrow  edges  rounded.  In 
some  cases  the  handle  part  of  wrenches  is  made  of  round 
iron  with  the  flat  head  welded  on. 

175.  Axes. — Common  axes  and  hand  axes  are  known 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY.  165 

and  recognized  by  everybody,  and  it  is  not  necessary  to 
describe  them.  They  are  not  used  often  in  track  work, 
but  when  they  are  needed,  nothing  else  will  take  their 
place. 

An  adze  is  the  most  convenient  instrument  for  cutting 
horizontal  surfaces,  and  is  generally  used  by  the  track 
gang  to  trim  the  top  of  the  tie  so  that  it  will  give  a  good 
seat  for  the  base  of  the  rail,  particularly  in  relaying  rails 
on  ties  that  are  slightly  worn.  In  case  the  old  spike  holes 
are  plugged,  the  plug  is  driven  with  the  axe  or  hand  axe 
and  is  cut  off  level  with  the  face  of  the  tie  with  the  adze. 
All  three  forms  of  axes  are  also  used  in  making  fences  or 
in  any  kind  of  timber  work. 

176.  Flags  and  Lanterns. — Signal  flags  consist  of  a 
rectangular  piece  of  red,  green,  or  white  cloth  or  bunting 
nailed  to  a  round  stick  about  one  inch  in  diameter  and  a 
few  inches  longer  than  the  narrowest  dimension  of  the 
flag,  the  shorter  dimension  being  along  the  stick.  A  set 
of  flags  should  be  carried  by  each  track  gang.  Track- 
work  is  dangerous  and  must  be  done  without  interfering 
with  traffic  as  far  as  possible,  but  the  gang  must  be  pro- 
tected by  a  flagman.  When  a  red  flag  is  displayed,  the 
train  must  stop ;  if  a  green  flag  is  shown,  it  must  proceed 
under  control,  which  is  sometimes  necessary  when  re- 
surfacing track ;  a  white  flag  means  all  clear. 

The  lanterns  used  on  a  section  are  usually  red  and 
white,  and  two,  the  number  mentioned  in  the  table, 
seem  a  very  inadequate  supply  for  a  section.  In  case  of 
a  washout  it  is  quite  possible  for  both  tracks  to  be  out  of 
service,  in  which  case  two  red  lanterns,  one  on  each 
track,  will  be  necessary. 


166  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

177.  Hand-  and  Push-cars. — Hand-cars  consist  of  a 
platform  mounted  upon  four  wheels  and  driven  by  a 
rack  and  lever  attached  to  two  bars.  These  bars  are  as 
.long  as  the  car  is  wide  and  stand  at  right  angles  to  the 
track;  the  bars  are  pumped  by  six  men,  three  facing 
forward  and  three  backward.  Hand -cars  must  have 
an  efficient  brake,  and  have  hand-holds  at  each  corner 
of  the  car,  so  that  they  can  be  lifted  to  and  from  the  track. 
The  hand-car  is  used  to  carry  the  section  gang  and  tools 
to  and  from  their  work. 

Push-cars  consist  of  a  plain  platform  mounted  on  four 


FIG.  100. 

wheels,  and  are  used  to  carry  ties  and  rails  to  the  point 
where  they  are  to  be  laid  in  track.  Both  of  these  cars 
are  essential  on  all  sections,  except  that  the  hand-car  is 
not  necessary  in  yard  work.  The  longer  the  section, 
the  greater  the  necessity  for  a  good  hand-car. 

178.  Track  Gauge.— The  two  essentials  of  a  track 
gauge  are — (1)  that  it  shall  be  forked  on  one  end,  as  shown 
in  the  plan,  Fig..  100,  and  (2)  that  the  projections  shall 
fit  against  the  gauge  of  the  rail  and  give  the  required 
gauge  of  track.  In  the  elevation,  Fig.  100,  three  pro- 
jections are  shown:  the  outer  projections  give  the  gauge 
of  track,  and  the  projection  A  gives  the  proper  spacing, 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY.  167 

If  inches,  of  guard  rails  from  the  main  rail.  The  faces 
a  b  should  be  vertical  for  the  A.  S.  C.  E.  section,  and 
should  have  the  direction  of  the  side  of  the  head  of  rail 
in  use.  The  curve  c  is  to  prevent  a  flow  of  metal  in  the 
head  of  the  rail  from  preventing  its  being  put  in  true 
gauge.  The  forked  end  is  to  insure  that  the  gauge  will 
be  placed  normal  to  the  rails.  The  ends  of  the  gauge  pro- 
ject just  beyond  the  centers  of  the  heads  of  the  rails. 
Gauges  constructed  in  a  number  of  different  ways  are  in 
use ;  the  gauge  shown  in  the  figure  consists  of  malleable 
iron  ends  with  sockets  into  which  is  screwed  a  piece  of 
round,  kiln-dried  white  oak,  1J  inches  in  diameter.  The 
gauge  is  made  as  light  in  weight  as  is  consistent  with 
strength  by  making  the  cross-sections  of  the  castings 
T-  and  U-shaped;  sometimes  hollow  cylindrical  sections 
are  used. 

In  using  the  gauge  one  rail  is  spiked ;  the  other  rail  is 
placed  approximately  in  position;  the  gauge  is  laid  on 
the  rails;  the  loose  rail  is  then  thrown  over  until  it  is  in 
true  gauge,  and  is  then  spiked. 

179.  Track  Jacks. — Track  jacks  are  used  to  raise  the 
track  to  the  proper  elevation  when  the  track  is  being 
tamped  into  surface.  The  Barrett  jack  shown  in  Fig.  101 
is  used  extensively.  The  point  c  and  the  part  e  are 
fastened  to  a  solid  bar  which  can  be  raised  by  pumping 
the  part  d  and  a  ratchet  attachment.  In  raising  the  part 
ce  a  wooden  handle  about  2  inches  in  diameter  and  three 
feet  long  is  inserted  into  the  socket  d,  and  two  men  force 
the  handle  downward,  the  ratchet  allowing  the  handle  to 
be  raised  without  resistance.  While  tamping,  the  handle 
is  removed  so  that  it  will  not  interfere  with  the  workmen. 


168 


RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


The  jack  can  be  released,  or  lowered,  by  moving  the 
clutch  /  on  the  side  of  the  jack  and  forcing  the  handle  up- 
ward, causing  the  part  ce  to  be  lowered.  In  some 
forms  of  this  jack  it  is  released  by  striking  another  form 

of  ckitch  on  the  side  of  the  jack 
with  the  wooden  handle,  where- 
upon the  part  c  e  falls  immedi- 
ately to  its  lowest  position,  the 
jack  collapsing  as  soon  as  the 
clutch  is  struck.  In  jacking 
the  track  the  point  c  is  placed 
as  low  as  possible,  part  of  the 
ballast  is  removed  so  that  the 
base  a  b  will  have  a  firm  sup- 
port and  the  point  c  will  grip 
the  base  of  the  rail;  the  mov- 
able wooden  handle  is  then  in- 
serted into  the  socket  d  and 
the  track  raised  until  the  top 
of  the  rail  is  at  the  desired  elevation. 

180.  Rail  Tongs. — Rail  tongs  are  used  in  handling 
rails,  one  man  taking  hold  of  each  handle  of  the  tongs. 
They  are  made  of  l|-inch 
round  iron  with  the  ends 
made  rectangular  in  sec- 
tion and  shaped  as  in 
Fig.  102,  being  fastened  to  pIG.  102. 

gether  by  a  f-inch   rivet. 

The  jaws  of  the  tongs  are  opened  and  slipped  over  the 
head  of  the  rail;  when  being  carried,  the  weight  of  the  rail 
causes  the  jaws  to  grip  the  rail.  A  33-foot  100-pound 


FIG.  101. 


MAINTENANCE    OF   WAY.  169 

rail  weighs  1100  pounds;  therefore  six  pairs  of  tongs  and 
twelve  men  will  be  required  if  the  rail  is  to  be  moved 
more  than  a  short  distance;  eight  men  could  carry  it  a 
short  distance,  and  four  men  could  slide  it  along. 

Tie  tongs  are  similar  to  rail  tongs  except  they  are  made 
of  lighter  iron  and  the  jaws  are  larger,  wider  apart,  and 
pointed  so  that  they  can  be  forced  into  opposite  sides  of 
the  tie. 

181.  Brush  Hooks  and  Scythes. — A    brush    hook 
(Fig.  103)  consists  of  a  sickle-shaped  piece  of  steel  about 
T3g-  of  an  inch  thick  on  the  back  and  2  inches  wide,  with 
a  cutting-edge  on  the   entire   concave   outline.     It   is 
fastened  to  an  ordinary  axe  handle  by  means  of  two  iron 
straps,  about  J  by  J  inch  in 

section,  which  pass  around 

the  handle  and  are  bolted 

through  the  blade.     More  FIG.  103. 

small  brush  can  be  cut  with 

a  brush  hook  in  the  same  time  and  with  greater  ease  than 

with  any  other  implement.     It  is  very  useful  in  clearing 

up  right-of-way  and  in  trimming  small  branches  from 

trees.     Including  blade  and  handle,  it  does  not  weigh 

more  than  three  pounds. 

For  section  work  scythes  should  be  of  two  forms,  viz., 
grass  and  brier  scythes.  The  snath,  or  handle,  is  the 
same  for  both.  The  grass  scythe  is  long  and  light  and 
is  not  strong  enough  to  cut  anything  tougher  than 
grass  or  green  weeds.  The  blade  of  the  brier  scythe  is 
short  and  thick,  and  can  be  used  to  cut  large  weeds  and 
even  small  bushes. 

182.  Level    Boards. — The    simplest    form    of    level 


170  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

board,  or  track  level,  consists  of  a  piece  of  plank  1}  or 
1J  inches  thick,  and  notched  on  one  end,  planed  on  all 
four  sides,  with  the  top  and  bottom  faces  exactly  parallel 
and  a  level  bubble  set  in  the  top  edge.  The  depth  a  e 
of  the  board  depends  upon  the  degree  of  the  curves  on 
the  section  and  the  standards  of  the  railroad.  The 
notches  b  c,  Fig.  104,  are  made  J,  J,  or  1  inch  deep.  If 
the  notches  are  made  1  inch  deep,  the  distances  c  d  may 
be  made  3  or  4  inches  long;  but  if  they  are  made  only 
J  of  an  inch  deep,  c  d  is  made  2  inches  long.  The  length 
a  6  must  be  at  least  5  feet,  so  that  the  board  can  be  used 
for  level  track.  A  hand  hole  is  cut  in  the  board  at  a  lo- 


FIG.  104. 

cation  such  that  the  board  will  balance  when  lifted  and 
will  carry  in  a  horizontal  position.  .  Either  soft  or  hard 
wood  may  be  used,  there  being  a  number  of  arguments  in 
favor  of  using  soft  wood,  such  as  white  pine,  the  argu- 
ment against  using  soft  wood  being  that  the  bearing 
surfaces  wear  out  sooner.  There  are  a  number  of  elab- 
orately designed  track  levels,  the  bearing  surfaces  being 
shod  with  metal,  and  the  difference  of  level  is  obtained 
by  means  of  a  movable  arm  which  moves  in  a  vertical 
direction  and  is  fastened  by  a  set-screw.  Unless  handled 
very  carefully,  metal-shod  boards  are  inclined  to  jar  the 
bubble  out  of  level. 
183.  Track  Chisels  and  Punches.— A  track  chisel, 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY. 


171 


or  rail  cutter,  is  shown  in  Fig.  105,  A.  It  consists  of  a 
piece  of  crucible  steel  made  in  the  shape  of  a  hammer, 
and  is  fastened  to  a  hammer  handle.  The  cutting-edge 
is  curved,  1-J-  inches  wide,  and  the  thickness  at  the  top 
of  the  bevel  and  the  beveled  edges  make  an  equilateral 
triangle  f  of  an  inch  on  the  side.  In  cutting,  a  mark  is 
made  around  the  rail,  the  chisel  is  placed  on  the  mark 
and  struck  with  a  sledge-hammer,  the  chisel  is  moved 
along  slowly  until  there  is  a  cut  entirely  around  the  rail, 
and  this  is  repeated  until  the  cut  is  deep  enough  to  allow 


FIG.  105. 

the  rail  to  be  broken  in  two.  If  a  short  piece  is  being 
cut  from  the  rail,  after  the  rail  has  been  cut  to  a  sufficient 
depth,  a  blow  on  the  end  of  the  rail  will  cause  it  to  break. 
If  the  cut  is  near  the  center  of  the  rail,  it  can  be  broken 
after  a  cut  of  sufficient  depth  has  been  made,  by  raising 
the  rail  and  dropping  it  across  a  block  raised  above  the 
general  ground  level. 

Track  punches,  Fig.  105,  B,  are  made  of  crucible  steel 
and  fastened  to  a  hammer  handle  the  same  as  a  track 
chisel.  The  punch  end  is  slightly  larger  at  the  extreme 


172  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

end  than  it  is  a  distance  back  from  the  end,  in  order  to 
prevent  it  from  sticking  fast  when  driven  in.  They  are 
usually  about  fj-  of  an  inch  square,  and  are  used  for  re- 
moving old  bolts  and  rivets,  and  in  some  cases  they  are 
used  to  force  the  holes  in  the  rail  and  splice-bars  into 
line,  so  that  a  bolt  can  be  put  in,  particularly  where  rails 
of  different  sizes  are  being  spliced  by  a  special  joint. 

Track  chisels  and  punches  are  used  in  case  of  emer- 
gency by  the  section  gang,  such  as  after  a  wreck,  when 
the  track  must  be  fixed  in  the  shortest  possible  time,  or 
in  laying  a  switch. 

184.  Rail  Fork. — A  rail  fork  is  used  in  turning  rails 


FIG.  106. 

over.  The  prongs  of  the  fork  are  slipped  over  the  "base 
of  the  rail.  Rail  forks  are  made  out  of  mild  steel;  the 
general  dimensions  are  as  shown  in  Fig.  106;  the  slot  is 
J  of  an  inch  wide  and  4  inches  deep,  the  prongs  are  If 
inches  thick,  the  lower  part  of  the  handle  is  If -inch 
octagonal  steel,  and  the  balance  of  the  handle  is  round, 
tapering  down  to  1-inch  diameter  at  the  end,  the  total 
length  being  33  inches.  Rail  forks  are  not  needed  often, 
but  they  are  very  convenient  and  save  a  great  deal  of 
time  in  some  cases,  such  as  in  cutting  a  rail,  in  which 
case  the  rail  must  be  turned  repeatedly. 

185.  Grubbing    Hoe    and    Post-hole    Digger. — A 
grubbing  hoe,  or  maddock,  is  shown  in  Fig.  107;  it  con- 


MAINTENANCE    OF   WAY. 


173 


sists  of  two  blades  whose  cutting-edges  are  set  at  right 
angles  to  each  other.  The  eye  for  the  handle  is  larger 
on  the  outside  and  the  handle  is  placed  in  the  head  in 
exactly  the  same  manner  as  in  a  pick.  It  is  made  of 
wrought-iron  with  steel  cutting-edges,  and  the  cutting- 
edges  are  tempered  so  that  they  are  not  hard  enough 


FIG.  107. 

to  break  if  a  stone  is  struck  in  digging.  The  lower  blade 
is  about  3  J  inches  wide,  and  is  curved  at  such  an  angle 
to  the  handle  that  when  the  workman  holds  the  handle 
at  an  ordinary  height,  the  end  of  the  blade  is  horizontal,  so 
that  the  surface  of  the  ground  can  be  skinned  off.  The 


5'0" 


J  L 


FIG.   108. 

grubbing  hoe  is  better  than  the  clay  pick  for  loosening 
material  when  the  material  is  full  of  roots  and  does  not 
contain  too  many  stones,  the  upper  edge  being  used  as  an 
axe  to  cut  roots.  Grubbing  hoes  may  be  bought  in  several 
sizes  and  weights,  the  head  weighing  from  4  to  6  pounds. 
A  post-hole  digger,  shown  in  Fig.  108,  consists  of  a 


174  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND    CONSTRUCTION. 

blade  about  12  inches  long,  3  inches  wide,  and  f  of  an 
inch  thick,  welded  to  a  wrought-iron  bar  5  feet  long 
and  1  inch  in  diameter.  About  3  inches  of  the  end  of 
the  blade  is  made  of  steel  and  has  a  chisel  edge  so  that  the 
hole  can  be  dug  with  vertical  sides,  and  is  tempered  the 
same  as  the  ends  of  picks  and  grubbing  hoes.  The  upper 
end  of  the  bar  is  pointed  so  that  it  can  be  used  in  loosening 
small  stones  that  obstruct  the  digging.  The  whole  bar 
is  about  6  feet  long  and  weighs  17  pounds.  The  post 
digger  is  proportioned  for  the  sole  purpose  of  digging 
holes,  and  is  not  strong  enough  to  use  as  a  crowbar. 

186.  Carpenter's  Kit. — The  carpenter's  kit  should 
consist  of  a  tool-box  containing  at  least  the  following 
tools :  1  auger,  1  brace,  2  brace-bits,  1  file,  1  nail  hammer, 
1  hatchet,  1  draw-knife,  and  1  handsaw.  These  tools, 
together  with  a  grindstone,  form  the  necessary  rainy-day 
repair  outfit.  Tools  with  tempered  steel  edges  can  be 
sharpened  by  grinding  when  the  edges  are  not  so  badly 
worn  that  they  must  be  drawn  out  and  reshaped  by  a 
blacksmith,  and  the  parts  of  stormy  days  in  which  the 
track  gang  cannot  do  regular  work  can  be  profitably 
spent  in  putting  tools  in  good  order.  Extra  hammer 
and  pick  handles  are  always  kept  in  the  section  tool  house, 
and  the  draw-knife  will  be  found  very  useful  in  fitting 
them,  particularly  if  there  should  be  a  bench  vise  in  the 
outfit. 

Descriptions  of  spike  pullers  and  ratchet  drills  can  be 
found  among  the  advertisements  of  any  engineering 
paper,  and  the  rest  of  the  miscellaneous  tools  mentioned 
in  ^[  163  are  so  well  known  that  they  need  no  description. 
If  the  members  of  the  track  gang  are  permanent,  as  they 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY. 


175 


should  be,  they  soon  become  proficient  in  handling  all 
the  tools  in  use  on  the  section,  and  the  number  of  tools 
going  back  and  forth  to  headquarters  for  repairs  is  re- 
duced to  a  minimum. 


83 


ARTICLE  XV. 
TRACK  SIGNS. 

187.  Division  Posts  and  Mile  Posts.  —Each  railroad 
has  its  own  standard  track  signs,  and  although  they  vary 
considerably,  there  is  enough  similarity  in  the  different 
standards   in  use  to   enable 
one  who  is  familiar  with  the 
meaning  of  signs  along  one 
railroad  to  understand  those 
of    another    railroad.      The 
principal  sign  that  interests 
the  general  traveling  public 
is  the   mile   post,  the  other 
signs  being  for  the  guidance 
of  the  employees.    Sign  posts 
vary  in  detail  design  from  a 

square  wooden  post  to  posts  built  of  angle  irons  and  iron 
plates  and  set  in  a  concrete  base. 

The  simplest  form  of  division  post  consists  of  the  square 
wooden  post  shown  in  Fig.  109,  A.  It  is  ten  inches 
square,  has  a  pyramid  top  four  inches  high,  is  7  feet  long, 
and  is  planted  2}  feet  in  the  ground,  leaving  4J  feet 


x 

\ 

z 

%        N 

m 

Z 

, 

FIG.  109. 


176  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

above  ground.  The  names  of  the  adjacent  divisions 
are  painted  on  the  post,  as  shown  in  the  figure,  in  letters 
four  or  five  inches  high.  Usually  the  post  is  painted 
white  and  the  letters  black,  but  sometimes  they  are 
painted  black  with  white  letters. 

Mile  posts  are  similar  in  form  and  dimensions  to  divi- 
sion posts,  and  are  marked  as  shown  in  Fig.  109,  B, 
the  numbers  representing  the  number  of  miles  from  each 
of  the  termini,  the  sum  of  the  numbers  being  the  length 
of  the  railroad  in  miles.  Division  and  mile  posts  are 
set  with  a  clearance  of  not  less  than  eight  feet  from  the 
gauge  line  of  the  outer  rail  in  fills,  and  just  beyond  the 
ditch  in  cuts. 

188.  Subdivision,  Section,  and  Yard  Limit  Posts.— 
In  Fig.  110,  A,  is  shown  the  general  arrangement  of  the 
Pennsylvania  Railroad  "  supervisor's  division"  and  "  sec- 
tion" signs.  The  numbers  are  placed  on  a  cast-iron 
oval  plate,  10J  by  20f  inches,  mounted  on  a  3-inch 
wrought-iron  pipe  which  is  set  in  a  stone  or  bed  of  con- 
crete 2J  feet  square  and  4  feet  deep  when  necessary. 
The  edges  of  the  cast-iron  plate  are  raised  J  of  an  inch, 
the  panels  are  sunk  J  of  an  inch,  and  the  figures  are  flush 
with  the  face  of  the  plate.  The  post  and  plate  are 
painted  black  and  the  numbers  white.  In  Fig.  110,  B, 
is  shown  the  back  of  the  plate,  the  diagonal  strengthening 
ribs,  and  the  socket  into  which  the  post  fits.  The  upper 
plate  in  Fig.  110,  A,  shows  the  "  supervisor's  division 
number,"  referred  to  in  previous  paragraphs  as  "  sub- 
divisions," and  the  lower  plate  shows  the  section  numbers. 
The  post  in  the  figure  shows  that  supervisor  No.  5  has 
sections  number  —  to  65,  and  supervisor  No.  6  has 


MAINTENANCE    OF  WAY. 


177 


sections  number  66  to  — .  For  intermediate  sections 
the  sign  post  is  similar  to  Fig.  110,  A,  without  the  top 
plate,  the  section  sign  being  in  both  cases  5J  feet  above 
the  ground. 

At  yard  limits  a  sign  post  of  the  dimensions  shown 
in  Fig.  110,  C,  is  placed.  It  is  made  of  cast-iron  in  the  same 
general  way  as  the  section  signs,  is  lettered  as  shown  in 
the  figure,  and  is  placed  eight  feet  above  the  ground. 


FIG.  110. 


189.  Whistle  and  Ring  Posts. — These  posts  may  be 
cast-iron  or  wood,  as  described  in  If  187,  Fig.  109,  ex- 
cepting the  top  of  the  post  is  5J  feet  above  the  top  of 
rail.  On  a  whistle  post  a  W  7^  inches  high  and  on  a 
ring  post  an  R  7J  inches  high  is  painted.  They  are 
painted  according  to  the  same  rules  mentioned  in 
H  187.  These  posts  are  set  facing  the  approaching  train 
at  the  distance  before  each  grade  crossing,  station,  etc., 
that  will  give  the  best  warning. 

IQO.  Road  Crossing  Signs. — Railroads  are  compelled 
12 


178 


RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


by  law  to  erect  signs  giving  warning  at  all  road  cross- 
ings, particularly  grade  crossings.  Formerly  these 
signs  read  as  in  Fig.  Ill,  B,  "Look  out  for  the  Loco- 
motive/' but  at  the  present  time  the  wording  in  Fig. 
Ill,  A,  "Railroad  Crossing,  Stop,  Look,  and  Listen,"  is 
in  most  general  use,  the  old  wording  still  being  in  force 
in  some  States.  It  has  been  said  that  the  man  who  ad- 
vised the  use  of  the  words,  "Stop,  Look,  and  Listen," 
received  the  highest  price  per  word  ever  received  by  a 
writer.  These  signs  are  made  in  many  different  ways. 


FIG.  111. 

The  standard  Pennsylvania  Railroad  signs  consist  of  an 
oval  plate  18J  inches  high  and  4  feet  wide,  made  of  cast- 
iron,  on  the  same  general  plan  of  the  section  sign  plates, 
and  mounted  in  the  same  way,  the  words  railroad, 
crossing,  look,  and,  and  listen  being  3  inches  high,  and 
stop  4  inches  high,  and  in  the  other  sign  the  words  for 
the  are  3  inches  high  and  all  the  rest  of  the  words  are  4 
inches  high;  the  face  of  the  letters  and  the  border  are 
painted  white  on  a  black  ground,  and  the  back  of  the 
sign  and  the  post  are  painted  black. 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY.  179 

191.  Trespass  Signs. — It  is  customary  for  railroads 
to  place  trespass  signs  at  certain  points  along  its  line. 
The  general  trespass  sign  usually  reads,  "Caution!  do  not 
walk  nor   trespass  on   the  railroad."     These  signs  are 
usually  placed  at  all  points  where  there  is  a  break  in  the 
right-of-way  fence.     At  each  end  of  a  bridge  is  placed 
a  sign  which  reads,  "Caution!  do  not  walk  nor  trespass 
on  this  bridge."     Each  railroad  has  standard  forms  for 
these  signs,  the  same  way  that  they  do  for  all  other  signs. 
At  private  crossings  a  sign  is  placed  which  reads,  "  Not 
a  public  crossing:  all  persons  are  warned  not 

to  trespass." 

192.  Property  Corner-stones  and  Center    -y 
Line  Markers. — A  property  corner-stone  is    J 
shown  i-n  Fig.  112.     It  consists  of  a  rough     ] 
block  of  granite  about  10  by  10  by  34  inches.    -^- 
The  top  is  dressed  6  inches  square  and  4 
inches  high,  with  the  edges  beveled  off  at  an 
angle  of  45  degrees,  leaving  the  top  face  5 


inches  square.     In  the  top  is  made  a  triangu-      FlG-  112- 
lar  shaped  cut  forming  a  cross,  the  center  of 
the  cross  being  the  exact  property  corner.     These  stones 
are  set  at  all  property  corners,  and  also  at  all  angle  points 
in  the  property  lines.     In  most  cases  a  hole  about  one- 
half  inch  in  diameter  is.  drilled  in  the  top  of  the  stone 
instead  of  the  cross  to  mark  the  exact  corner. 

Center  line  markers  should  be  placed  every  three  or 
four  hundred  feet  on  a  tangent  and  every  hundred  feet 
on  curves,  and  also  at  each  P  C.,  P.  C.  C.,  and  P.  T.,  so 
that  the  track  will  not  be  gradually  thrown  out  of  true 
line.  In  most  cases  3-  by  3-inch  white  oak  stakes  are 


180  RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

used,  and  in  some  cases  stone  monuments  similar  to 
Fig.  112  are  set  with  the  top  flush  with  the  top  of  the 
ballast.  The  Pennsylvania  R.  R.  uses  an  iron  center 
line  marker,  the  outline  of  the  cross-sections  of  which 
is  square,  with  round  re-entrant  corners,  three  inches 
at  the  top  and  two  and  one-half  inches  at  the  bottom; 
its  total  length  is  three  feet,  the  point  being  six  inches 
long.  The  top  has  a  cross  one-half  inch  deep  in  it,  simi- 
lar to  the  top  of  the  property  stone  cross  in  Fig.  112. 
These  markers  are  driven  on  the  center  line  of  track,  and 
enable  the  track  foreman  to  keep  his  track  in  true  line. 
193.  Road  Crossings. — On  account  of  the  open 
space  necessary  along  the  gauge  of  rail,  wheels  of  vehicles 
in  crossing  over  the  rails  are  very  destructive  to  the 
roadway,  and  it  is  very  difficult  to  construct  a  road 
crossing  that  will  hold  a  good  top  surface.  It  has  been 
found  that  the  most  serviceable  roadway  consists  of  a 
framework  of  planks  filled  in  with  ordinary  ballast  to 
within  a  short  distance  from  the  surface,  and  covered  with 
a  top  dressing  of  fine  crushed  stone,  preferably  trap  rock. 
The  planks  used  are  12  inches  wide,  4  inches  thick,  and  as 
long  as  required.  The  plan  and  section  of  a  road  cross- 
ing are  shown  in  Fig.  113,  A  and  B.  It  consists  of  two 
planks  outside  of  each  rail,  or  outside  of  the  outside 
rails  when  the  railroad  is  double-track,  one  plank  on  the 
inside  of  each  rail,  and  a  piece  of  plank  at  each  side  of  the 
road  crossing  between  rails,  forming  a  box.  Usually 
a  row  of  stone  blocks  is  placed  along  the  side  of  the  outer 
planks  as  shown.  Fig.  113,  B,  gives  the  elevation  of  this 
arrangement.  The  planks  are  spiked  to  the  ties  and  the 
middle  filled  with  broken  stone,  as  described  above. 


MAINTENANCE  OF  WAY. 


181 


The  arrangement  of  the  planks  next  the  rail  is  shown 
in  Fig.  114,  A;  the  top  surface  of  the  outside  plank  is 
placed  J  inch  below  the  top  of  the  rail,  and  the  top  of  the 


-HP. 


n 


FIG.  113. 


inside  plank  1J  inches  below,  as  shown  in  the  figure. 
The  plank  next  to  the  gauge  of  rail  is  notched  as  shown, 
so  that  the  flanges  of  the  wheels  will  not  be  obstructed. 
In  order  to  have  the  tops  of  the  planks  at  the  proper 


FIG.  114. 


elevation,  furring  must  be  placed  between  the  ties  and 
the  planks,  the  thickness  of  the  furring  depending  upon 
the  weigh,  or  height,  of  the  rail. 

Instead  of  the  notch  shown  in  Fig.  114,  A,  the  space  for 


182  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

the  wheel  flanges  is  sometimes  obtained  by  placing  an 
old  rail  on  the  inside  of  the  track  rail,  as  shown  in  Fig. 
114,  B,  and  the  planks  are  laid  against  the  base  of  the 
old  rail. 


•ARTICLE  XVI. 
THE  WORK  TRAIN. 

194.  Function  of  Work  Train. — The  work  train  is 
used  to  distribute  track  material  along  the  line  at  the 
various  points  where  the  material  is  needed  for  repairs 
or  renewal,  particularly  ballast,  ties,  and  rails.  A  work 
train  is  a  necessity  on  a  division  handling  heavy  traffic, 
and  is  in  active  service  most  of  the  time,  except  possibly 
in  the  winter  months.  If  a  temporary  trestle  has  been 
built  on  a  new  road  on  account  of  lack  of  proper  material 
for  the  fill,  the  fill  to  replace  the  trestle  is  made  by  .the 
work  train  and  its  force.  On  the  older  lines,  where  there 
are  no  temporary  trestles  to  be  filled,  one  of  the  principal 
uses  made  of  the  work  train  is  in  removing  rails  and  ties 
and  laying  new  ones.  Where  the  ties  or  rails  are  to  be 
replaced  at  intervals  or  in  short  stretches  where  they  have 
become  unserviceable,  the  work  train  distributes  the 
material  and  the  section  gang  does  the  laying,  but  where 
new  ties  or  rails  are  to  be  laid  for  considerable  distances, 
all  the  old  ones  being  removed,  it  is  more  economical 
to  do  the  work  with  the  work  train  force.  The  above 
remarks  apply  more  particularly  to  cross- ties,  as  rails 
are  usually  renewed  in  long  continuous  stretches. 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY.  183 

195.  Form  of  Train. — The  number  and  kind  of  cars 
composing  the  work  train  depend  partly  upon  the  work 
to  be  done,  and  consist  in  all  cases  of  an  engine,  caboose, 
and  tool  car,  the  balance  of  the  train  being  made  up  of 
the  cars  necessary  to  handle  the  material  for  the  particu- 
lar piece  of  work.  Rails  are  hauled  on  flat  cars  with  low 
sides  and  the  ties  in  gondola  cars.  If  the  track  is  being 
ballasted  for  the  first  time,  cars  with  hoppers  in  them 
could  be  used,  provided  the  discharge  could  be  regulated, 
but  when  the  ballast  is  for  renewal  purposes,  it  is  hauled 
in  gondola,  flat,  or  special  cars  and  deposited  on  each 
side  of  the  track,  as  it  would  not  be  safe  to  deposit  ballast 
between  the  rails  of  a  track  that  is  in  service.  It  is  ex- 
pensive to  distribute  ballast  from  a  gondola  car,  therefore 
in  most  cases  the  ballast  is  hauled  on  flat  cars  with  movable 
sides,  particularly  when  the  haul  is  short. 

The  caboose  should  be  large  and  furnished  with  as 
many  conveniences  as  practicable.  In  most  cases  they 
are  built  for  the  purpose,  but  sometimes  old-fashioned 
passenger  coaches  are  fitted  up  as  cabooses.  The  seats 
are  usually  along  the  sides  of  the  car  and  arranged  with 
lockers  underneath  in  which  the  men  may  stow  their 
dinner-pails,  and  there  should  also  be  lockers  for  neces- 
sary supplies  and  some  of  the  tools.  The  caboose  should 
contain  a  stove  for  heating  purposes,  a  water-cooler, 
and  a  desk  for  the  foreman.  The  platforms  at  the  ends 
of  the  caboose  should  be  large  and  roofed  over,  and  the 
steps  and  grab-irons  conveniently  placed,  as  it  is  necessary 
for  the  men  to  be  able  to  get  on  and  off  in  the  least 
possible  time.  It  is  usually  provided  with  a  large  box 
or  locker  which  is  fastened  underneath  the  center  of  the 


184  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

car,  and  in  which  ropes,  chains,  screw-jacks,  snatch- 
blocks,  rerailing  frogs,  etc.,  are  kept. 

196.  The  Tool  Car. — A  tool  car  consists  of  a  flat  car 
upon  which  large  tool  boxes  are  fastened.     The  tools  in 
most  common  use,  such  as  shovels,  lining  bars,  tamping 
bars,  etc.,  are  kept  in  these  boxes,  which  are  provided 
with  locks.     The  tool  car  is  often  provided  with  a  grab- 
piece  and  a  running-board  on  each  side  of  the  car,  and  for 
its  entire  length,  so  that  the  men  can  get  aboard  quickly 
and  conveniently.     The  tool  car  is  coupled  just  ahead 
of  the  caboose.     The  tool  car  and  caboose  should  be 
attached  to  the  work  train  at  all  times,  and  should  carry 
a  complete  outfit  of  tools,  so  that  a  large  force  of  men 
can  be  supplied  with  tools  to  do  any  kind  of  track  work 
that  may  be  required,  and  should  also  be  outfitted  for 
ordinary  wrecking  purposes. 

197.  The  Engine. — A  work  train  is  not  heavy  and 
must  make  good  time,  consequently  a  passenger  loco- 
motive is  best  for  the  work  train.     Old  passenger  "loco- 
motives that  are  too  light  or  too  much  worn  for  service 
on  regular  trains  are  generally  used,  but  it  is  not  economi- 
cal to  use  an  engine  that  is  not  in  fair  condition.     It  is 
necessary  to  work  between  regular  trains  without  inter- 
fering with  the  regular  train  schedule,  and  at  best  a 
great  deal  of  time  is  lost  in  getting  to  a  siding  until  a 
regular  train  has  passed  and  then  back  to  the  working 
point.     The   work   train   usually   starts  from   division 
headquarters  in  the  morning  and  returns  at  night,  and 
if  it  has  a  passenger  locomotive  and  is  fully  equipped 
with    air-brakes,    it     can    run    on    a     passenger-train 
schedule  and  not  be  compelled  to  lay  over  in  order 


MAINTENANCE    OF   WAY.  185 

to  allow  passenger  trains  going  in  the  same  direction 
to  pass  it. 

198.  The  Work  Train  Crew.— The  work  train  crew 
consists  of  the.  train  crew  and  the  work  gang.     The  train 
crew  consists  of  at  least  four  men,  viz.,  the  conductor, 
engineer,  fireman,  and  at  least  one  brakeman  or  flagman. 
Some  railroads  place  both  the  train  crew  and  the  working 
force  in  charge  of  one  man  and  call  him  either  conductor 
or  foreman,  and  make  him  responsible  for  both  running 
the  train  and  handling  the  men.     This  is  not   an  eco- 
nomical arrangement,  particularly  on  roads  with  heavy 
traffic,  especially  as  another  flagman  is  required.     The 
best  arrangement  is  to  have  the  train  crew  in  charge 
of  a  conductor  and   the  work  gang  in  charge  of  a  fore- 
man.    The  conductor  is  responsible  for  the  safe  running 
of  the  train,  receives  and  is  governed  by  the  orders  of  the 
train 'dispatcher,  and  sees  that  the  train  is  properly  pro-- 
tected  by  the  flagman,  and  runs  the  train  as  requested 
by  the  foreman  within  the  above  limits. 

The  foreman  distributes  the  materials  and  handles 
his  working  force  free  of  all  worry  about  running  the  train. 
He  must  keep  his  men  employed  as  constantly  as  possible. 
Excepting  in  special  cases,  he  knows  the  exact  length 
of  time  he  will  be  able  to  work  uninterruptedly  at  a 
certain  place,  and  also  the  length  of  time  the  train  must 
stay  on  a  siding. ,  In  case  of  a  long  lay-over,  he  should, 
if  possible,  provide  work  for  his  men  adjacent  to  the  siding; 
if  nothing  else,  they  can  dress  slopes  and  clean  ditches 
and  the  right-of-way. 

199.  The  Work  Train  Force. — The  size  of  the  work- 
ing force  for  the  work  train  depends  upon  the  work  to  be 


186  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

done.  The  cost  of  running  the  train  and  wages  of  the 
train  crew  are  relatively  constant,  and  it  is  not  econom- 
ical to  work  short-handed.  If  the  train  is  in  constant 
service,  a  regular  force  is  employed,  as  much  more  work 
can  be  done  with  an  experienced  force.  If  the  train 
is  not  in  constant  service,  it  will  be  necessary  to  pick 
up  inexperienced  men  when  needed,  in  which  case  the 
efficiency  of  the  force  can  be  increased  by  using  one  or 
more  men  from  the  nearest  section  gang. 

The  cost  of  the  work  train  per  day  for  engine,  fuel, 
and  wages  of  train  crew  is  about  $30.00;  consequently, 
where  possible,  a  large  working  force  should  be  used,  as 
the  greater  the  number  of  men,  the  less  the  proportionate 
expense  of  the  train. 

200.  Distributing  Ties. — If  ties  have  been  delivered 
to  the  railroad  and  piled  to  season  at  convenient  points 
along  the  division,  the  work  train  may  be  run  to  the  Near- 
est supply  and  ties  loaded  on  the  train  by  the  working 
force.  It  will  in  many  cases,  however,  be  more  econom- 
ical to  have  cars  loaded  with  ties  placed  on  sidings  near 
the  place  where  they  are  to  be  used,  where  the  work  train 
can  pick  them  up.  In  distributing  the  ties  a  great  saving 
can  be  made  by  placing  the  ties  at  the  right  place.  The 
section  foreman  should  make  a  careful  report  to  the  super- 
visor, stating  how  many  and  where  the  ties  are  needed. 
This  report  should  be  forwarded  to  the  assistant  engi- 
neer by  the  supervisor,  and  the  assistant  engineer  should 
instruct  the  foreman  of  the  work  train  to  distribute  the 
ties  accordingly,  or  the  supervisor  or  his  assistant  should 
go  with  the  train  and  see  that  the  proper  distribution 
is  made.  In  many  cases  the  train  can  be  run  slowly 


MAINTENANCE   OF    WAY.  187 

and  the  ties  distributed  while  it  is  moving,  care  being 
taken  not  to  throw  them  too  far  from  the  track,  particu- 
larly on  high  fills,  where  they  are  liable  to  slide  to  the 
bottom.  Careless  work  on  the  part  of  the  train  work- 
men will  cause  a  great  amount  of  work  and  loss  of  time 
to  the  section  gang,  as  it  will  cause  a  great  deal  of  push- 
car  work  to  get  the  ties  to  the  right  place.  The  distrib- 
ution may  be  governed  by  chalk  marks  on  telegraph 
poles  or  fences;  it  would  also  be  well  to  have  the  section 
foreman  accompany  the  train. 

201.  Handling  Rails. — The  work  train  force  have 
two  problems  in  handling  rails,  viz.,  unloading  new  rails 
and  loading  old  rails.  Rails  are  usually  unloaded  by 
dropping  them  from  the  side  of  the  car,  by  sliding  them 
off  with  skids,  or  by  means  of  derricks.  There  are  also 
several  methods  and  devices  for  unloading  rails  by  drag- 
ging them  from  the  rear  car  of  the  train  by  means  of  a  drag 
rope  and  truck,  etc.  The  details  of  unloading  the  rails 
depend  to  a  great  extent  upon  the  kind  of  car  they  are 
loaded  on.  The  rail  may  be  slid  to  the  top  of  the  side 
of  the  car  by  means  of  skids  and  dropped,  or  slid  by 
means  of  another  set  of  skids  on  to  the  ground  or  ballast. 
If  care  is  taken  that  both  ends  of  the  rail  strike  the  bal- 
last at  the  same  time,  there  is  very  little  danger  of  in- 
juring the  rail  in  either  case;  but  even  when  skids  are 
used,  the  rail  may  be  ruined  by  having  one  end  hit  the 
ground  considerably  before  the  other.  Rails  may  be  un- 
loaded from  both  sides  of  the  car  at  the  same  time,  but 
frequently  on  double-track  roads  all  the  rails  are  un- 
loaded on  the  inside  and  allowed  to  lie.between  the  tracks. 

In  loading  old  rails,  the  rail  is  picked  up,  raised  above 


188  RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

the  side  of  the  car,  and  thrown  broadside  into  the  car. 
It  is  a  dangerous  proceeding  for  inexperienced  men, 
but  there  is  practically  no  danger  with  experienced  men. 
A  sufficient  number  of  men  to  raise  the  rail  at  arm's 
length  with  ease  should  be  used;  they  stoop  over  and 
take  hold  of  the  head  of  the  rail,  straighten  up,  then 
raise  the  rail  above  their  heads,  step  forward,  and  throw 
it  upon  the  car.  An  80-pound  rail  33  feet  longf  weighs 
880  pounds;  there  is  not  room  for  more  than  about 
sixteen  men  to  take  hold  of  it,  and  each  man  must  lift 
55  pounds. 

202.  Handling  Ballast. — The  handling  of  the  various 
kinds  of  ballast  until  it  is  loaded  on  the  cars  at  the  supply 
points  is  described  in  detail  in  Chapter  II,  Article  II. 
The  ballast  is  then  hauled  to  the  division  headquarters 
and  placed  on  sidings,  and  each  day  the  work  train  takes 
as  many  cars  of  ballast  as  can  be  distributed  during  the 
day.     Ballast  can  be  handled  in  three  ways,  depending 
upon  the  amount  of  work  to  be  done,  as  follows-:    It 
can  be  distributed  along  a  long  stretch  of  track  and  then 
tamped,  or  it  can  be  distributed  along  a  short  distance 
and  tamped  and  then  over  another  short  distance,  etc., 
all  the  work  being  done  by  the  work  train  force ;  or  it  can  be 
distributed  by  the  work  train  and  tamped  by  the  section 
gangs. 

203.  Filling  a  Temporary  Trestle. — At  least  two 
trains  are  required  for  each  steam  shovel  when  the  site 
of  a  temporary  trestle  is  being  filled,  and  the  size  of  the 
trains,  distance  hauled,  and  the  method  of  operation 
should  be  such  that  the  shovel  is  in  continuous  operation 
and  one  train  working  all  the  time  that  the  other  train 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY.  189 

is  being  loaded.  The  excavated  material  is  loaded  on 
flat  cars  with  sides  fastened  with  hinges,  so  that  the  sides 
can  be  dropped  before  unloading,  or  in  one  of  the  many 
forms  of  patented  side-dumping  cars.  The  material  is 
unloaded  from  flat  cars  either  by  hand  or  with  a  plow. 
There  are  a  number  of  patented  plows  which  in  general  con- 
sist of  a  heavy  framework  which  holds  a  moldboard  in  a 
diagonal  position  across  the  car,  and  is  guided  by  some 
device  on  the  side  of  the  car  opposite  to  the  side  from 
which  the  material  is  unloaded.  In  the  simplest  form 
of  plow  the  moldboard  consists  of  a  plank  shod  with 
boiler-iron  and  held  in  position  by  a  triangular  frame- 
work. The  train  is  hauled  to  the  fill  and  fastened  by 
brakes  or  blocks  so  that  it  cannot  move;  the  engine  is 
cut  loose  from  the  train  and  drags  the  plow  ahead  by 
means  of  a  rope.  In  some  cases  the  plow  is  built  so 
that  its  point  follows  the  center  of  the  car  and  throws 
the  material  both  ways.  The  economy  of  using  a  plow 
depends  upon  the  kind  of  material  that  is  being  handled, 
it  being -cheaper  to  unload  some  kinds  of  material  by 
hand. 

204.  Wrecking. — When  a  wreck  occurs,  it  is  the  duty 
of  the  employees  of  the  railroad  to  report  it  promptly  to 
headquarters.  The  train  dispatcher  and  the  wrecking 
crew  are  notified  immediately.  The  train  dispatcher 
takes  all  precautions  necessary  to  safeguard  all  trains, 
and  the  wrecking  crew  and  outfit  are  hurried  to  the 
scene  of  accident.  In  case  of  accident  to  a  passenger 
train  in  which  persons  are  injured,  a  relief  train  is  also 
hurried  forward.  The  wreck  train  is  kept  at  division 
headquarters  and  is  usually  under  the  charge  of  the 


190  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

track  department  or  the  master  mechanic  of  the  shops. 
Each  railroad  has  its  own  method,  depending  upon  the 
nature  of  the  work  likely  to  be  required.  One  railroad 
may  be  so  located  and  constructed  that  in  case  of  a  wreck 
most  of  the  damage  will  be  to  rolling  stock  and  the  injury 
to  the  track  will  be  of  minor  importance.  On  railroads 
in  mountainous  country  subject  to  landslides  most  of  the 
injury,  may  be  to  the  track.  In  any  case  it  is  the  duty 
of  the  wrecking  force  to  get  the  track  in  operation  as 
soon  as  possible. 

205.  The  Wreck  Train.— Where  there  is  a  construc- 
tion train  in  constant  use  on  a  division,  and  it  carries 
the  equipment  mentioned  in  If  196,  the  only  additional 
outfit  necessary  is  a  derrick  car  and  a  sufficient  supply 
of  hydraulic  and  other  heavy  jacks.     As  soon  as  the  shop 
force  knows  the  nature  of  the  wreck,   the  necessary 
equipment  can  be  obtained  from  the  shops.     It  is  the 
duty  of  the  nearest  section  gang  and  the  work  train  to 
proceed  to  any  serious  wreck  immediately,  the  wrecking 
crew  and  train  arriving  as  soon  as  possible.     When  there 
is  no  regular  work  train,  the  wreck  train  must  carry  all 
the  tools  and  appliances  previously  mentioned,-  and  are 
usually  kept  loaded  on  a  car  and  ready  for  instant  service. 
A  telegraphing  outfit  is  also  carried,  so  that  reports  can  be 
made  promptly  to  headquarters,  either  to  report  that  the 
track  is  clear  or  to  ask  for  additional  equipment. 

206.  The  Wrecking  Crew. — On  most  railroads  the 
wreck  train  is  in  charge  of  at  least  two  men,  a  foreman 
and  an  assistant,  who  are  constantly  on  duty,  and  whose 
duty  it  is  to  see  that  the  train  is  ready  for  service  on  short 
notice.     The  wrecking  crew  is  made  up  of  as  many  ex- 


MAINTENANCE    OF  WAY.  191 

perienced  men  as  can  be  obtained,  including  shop  men. 
On  account  of  the  various  gangs  and  crews  whose  duty 
it  is  to  help  clear  up  a  wreck,  it  is  important  that  there 
shall  be  a  rule  defining  who  shall  take  charge  of  the 
wreck,  in  order  to  prevent  a  conflict  of  authority.  The 
wreckage  can  be  handled  best  by  the  shop  men,  and  the 
track  work  by  the  track  department,  as  both  bosses 
and  men  will  be  best  acquainted  with  the  work  in  hand. 

Every  wreck  train  should  be  supplied  with  a  "  first  aid 
to  the  injured"  outfit,  as  it  may  be  indispensable  in  caring 
for  those  injured  in  the  wreck  or  for  members  of  the  crew 
injured  while  engaged  in  clearing  the  wreck.  All  train 
men  should  be  instructed  in  applying  simple  remedies, 
and  particularly  in  bandaging  wounds,  as  a  compress 
or  bandage  applied  immediately  may  save  life. 

207.  Snow-plows. — Excepting  in  the  lower  Mississippi 
and  Gulf  States  and  portions  of  the  southwest,  consid- 
erable trouble  is  experienced  in  all  parts  of  the  United 
States  in  keeping  the  tracks  free  from  snow  in  winter. 
This  problem  is  so  serious  that  in  some  parts  of  the 
northwestern  States  snow-sheds  and  even  tunnels  are 
built  to  prevent  snow  from  completely  stopping  train 
service  temporarily.  Snow-plows  are  of  three  general 
types,  viz.,  attachments  that  are  placed  on  the  locomo- 
tive, push  plows,  and  especially  designed  machines.  The 
first-mentioned  type,  attachments  to  the  front  of  the 
locomotive,  is  all  that  is  required  in  a  large  part  of  the 
country,  but  in  sections  noted  for  heavy  snow-falls  the 
machine  snow-plow  is  used. 

When  the  snow  is  not  deep  and  is  light,  an  attachment 
to  the  locomotive  pilot  is  all  that  is  necessary  to  keep 


192  RAILROAD   TRACK   AND    CONSTRUCTION. 

the  track  clear.  There  are  a  number  of  pilot  snow-plows ; 
one  of  the  attachments  consists  of  two  boiler-plate 
moldboards  which  are  fastened  to  the  sides  of  the  pilot 
so  that  they  present  a  vertical  sharp  edge  to  the  snow. 
These  moldboards  are  slightly  concave,  so  that  the  snow 
slides  both  ways  from  the  point,  which  is  over  the  center 
of  the  track.  An  arrangement  of  this  kind  is  only  effec- 
tive in  keeping  the  track  open,  and  would  be  of  no  use 
in  opening  a  track  that  has  become  snow-bound.  The 
fight  to  keep  the  tracks  open  should  begin  as  soon 
as  the  snow  begins  to  fall,  particularly  if  there  are  indi- 
cations of  a  heavy  storm.  If  the  above  simple  device 
can  be  kept  moving  during  the  storm,  every  train  re- 
moves a  part  of  the  snow,  and  it  will  not  be  possible 
for  the  snow  to  block  trains;  but  if  nothing  is  done  until 
the  snow  has  become  deep,  with  the  accompanying  drift- 
ing and  packing  that  take  place,  or  the  storm  is  so  heavy 
that  it  stalls  trains  between  stations,  then  the  machine 
plows  are  required  to  open  the  road.  Snow  nearly  always 
causes  delay,  but  only  in  exceptional  cases  does  it  com- 
pletely stop  heavy  traffic. 

208.  Push  and  Machine  Plows. — Push  snow-plows 
consist  of  a  specially  designed  car  the  end  of  which  is  so 
shaped  that  the  snow  is  plowed  from  the  track  when  the 
plow  is  pushed  along  by  locomotives.  On  a  single-track 
railroad  the  plow  is  shaped  so  that  the  snow  is  thrown 
both  ways  from  the  center  of  the  track,  but  on  double- 
track  roads  it  is  shaped  so  that  all  the  snow  is  thrown 
to  the  outer  side,  so  that  the  snow  from  one  track  will  not 
be  thrown  on  the  other  track. 

The  machine  snow-plow  in  most  common  use  is  the 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY.  193 

" rotary"  snow-plow.  It  consists  of  an  especially  de- 
signed engine  which  resembles  a  freight  car  to  some  ex- 
tent, with  a  vertical  revolving  wheel  on  the  front  end, 
the  wheel  consisting  of  blades  that  are  so  arranged 
that  they  cut  away  the  snow,  the  snow  being  thrown  to 
either  side  of  the  track  from  the  top  of  the  case  holding 
the  rotary  cutting  wheel.  The  case  or  hood  is  made  of 
steel  plates,  with  cutting-edges  at  the  sides  and  bottom. 
The  wheel  makes  about  200  revolutions  per  minute,  will 
cut  through  a  large  drift  of  packed  snow,  and  will  throw 
the  snow  from  50  to  150  feet  from  the  track,  depending 
upon  the  condition  of  the  snow  and  the  speed.  The 
rotary  snow-plow  will  clear  the  track  at  the  rate  of  6 
miles  per  hour  in  heavy  snow,  and  12  to  15  miles  per  hour 
in  light  snow.  Rotary  snow-plows  are  expensive  in  first 
cost  and  operation,  and  are  economical  only  on  railroads 
where  the  snow  forms  drifts  of  such  depth  that  the  simple 
forms  of  snow-plows  will  not  work. 


ARTICLE  XVII. 
MISCELLANEOUS. 

209.  Bumpers. — Car  stops,  bumping  blocks,  or  bump- 
ers, are  devices  to  prevent  cars  from  running  off  the  end 
of  a  track,  and  are  made  in  a  great  many  forms,  varying 
from  a  bank  of  earth  to  an  elaborately  designed  and 
patented  device.  The  first  requisite  of  a  bumper  is  that 
it  will  stop  the  car;  the  secondary  one  is  that  the  car 
13 


194 


RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


shall  not  be  injured.  Where  there  is  plenty  of  space  for 
it,  a  bank  of  earth  makes  a  very  effective  car  stop.  The 
bank  should  be  cut  to  a  nearly  vertical  face,  the  track 
laid  up  to  this  face,  and  then  the  excavated  earth  should 
be  replaced  so  that  bank  facing  the  track  should  have 
a  natural  earth  slope.  If  a  car  strikes  the  slope  at 
a  reasonable  velocity,  the  wheels  cut  through  the  earth 
and  encounter  an  increasing  resistance  as  they  get 
further  into  the  bank,  and  the  car  will  be  brought  to  a 
stop  without  the  wheels  leaving  the  rails.  If  the  car 


1 

: 

g 

<                   fi'n"               > 

^3-0-^ 

FIG.  115. 

is  traveling  at  an  excessive  rate  when  it  strikes  the 
bumper,  the  truck  that  strikes  the  bumper  may  be  de- 
railed, but  nothing  will  be  broken. 

The  design  of  a  bumper  depends  upon  its  location, 
the  strongest  and  best  forms  being  used  in  places  where 
the  car  must  be  stopped  regardless  of  the  damage  that 
may  be  done  to  the  car.  This  is  the  case  where  a  track 
ends  at  the  building  line  of  a  street,  where  loss  of  life 
might  result  if  a  car  were  to  run  into  the  street.  A 
simple  and  effective  bumper  is  shown  in  Fig.  115;  it  is 
made  by  turning  the  ends  of  the  rails  up,  as  shown  in  Fig. 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY.  195 

115,  until  they  are  about  4J  feet  above  the  top  of  rail; 
two  pieces  of  rail  are  bent  so  that  the  parts  a  b  and  c  d 
are  18  inches  long  and  vertical  and  horizontal  respectively; 
these  pieces  are  riveted  or  bolted  together  at  a  b  and  are 
strapped  or  bolted  to  the  stringer  e  f  at  c  and  g.  Both 
rails  of  the  track  are  arranged  as  shown  in  the  figure 
and  described  above,  and  a  12-  by  12-inch  timber,  A,  is 
bolted  to  the  rails  transversely  to  the  track  with  its 
center  3f  feet  above  the  top  of  the  rail. 

210.  Gauge  of  Track.— In  the  early  days  of  railroad- 
ing in  the  United  States  a  number  of  different  widths 
of  gauge  were  used,  and  were  divided  into  two  general 
classes,  viz.,  broad  gauge  and  narrow  gauge.     This  made 
it  necessary  to  transfer  all  freight  at  the  junctions  of  two 
roads  of  different  gauge,  and  caused  so  much  delay  and 
expense  that  the  same  gauge  was  adopted  by  all  rail- 
roads.    This  is  called  " standard  gauge,"  and  is  4  feet 
8J  inches,  some  railroads  using  4  feet  9  inches,  and  a 
car  can  be  shipped  to  any  railroad  point  in  the  United 
States.     There  are  a  number  of  different  gauges  in  use 
in  other  countries,  a  broad  gauge  in  common  use  being 
5  feet,  and  a  narrow  gauge  which  is  used  extensively  is 
1  meter.     Narrow-gauge  roads  are  usually  built  where 
construction  is  both  difficult  and  expensive,  but  even 
then  it  is  of  doubtful  economy. 

211.  Widening   Gauge  on  Curves. — On  account  of 
the  length  of  the  wheel-base  of  large  locomotives  it  is 
customary  on  some  railroads  to  widen  the  gauge  on 
curves.     The  gauge  of  the  wheel  flanges  is  made  4  feet 
8J  inches,  which  gives  a  play  of  f  of  an  inch  on  standard 
gauge  when  the  rails  and  flanges  are  not  worn.     The 


196  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

wheel  flanges  soon  become  worn,  which  gives  a  play  of 
more  than  f  of  an  inch,  therefore  on  curves  of  a  radius 
of  955  feet  or  more  there  is  no  necessity  for  widening 
the  gauge.  There  is,  however,  a  difference  of  opinion, 
a'nd  some  railroads  widen  the  gauge  a  proportionate 
amount  on  curves.  The  New  York,  Lake  Erie,  and 
Western  Railroad  uses  the  following  rule  :* 

AMOUNT  OF  WIDEN- 
ING IN  INCHES. 


DEGREE  OF 
CURVE. 

RADIUS  IN 
FEET. 

GAUGE. 

Oto  3 

to  1910 

4  ft.  8}  ins. 

3  to  5 

1910  to  1146 

4  "  8f  " 

5  to  7 

1146  to  819 

4  "  8J  " 

7  to  9 

819  to  637, 

4  "  8|  " 

9  to  11 

637  to  521 

4  "  9  " 

212.  Clearances. — It  is  customary  for  each  railroad 
company  to  issue  "dimension  books/'  which  give  the 
size  of  the  largest  object  that  will  pass  through  the 
smallest  tunnel,  bridge,  or  opening  on  the  railroad. 
These  data  are  very  important  to  firms  that  manufacture 
large  objects.  Where  the  weight  does  not  prohibit, 
parts  of  structures  are  put  together  in  the  shops  in  as 
large  portions  as  possible,  the  limiting  feature  being  the 
possibility  of  shipping  it  to  its  destination.  In  many 
cases  it  has  been  necessary  to  ship  large  objects  by 
roundabout  routes  on  account  of  an  old-time  small 
opening  on  the  direct  route.  These  dimension  books 
give,  first,  the  dimensions  governing  the  size  of  the  object 
that  can  be  shipped  over  the  entire  system  of  the  rail- 
road, and,  second,  those  of  each  division.  As  soon  as 
the  smallest  of  these  openings  is  rebuilt  and  enlarged,  a 
new  dimension  book  is  issued.  These  data  are  tabulated 

*  Standards  and  Rules,  American  Railways,  Roadmaster  and 
Foreman. 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY.  197 

in  three  columns:  First,  " Height  above  top  of  rail"; 
second,  the  corresponding  "  width  of  lading  on  open 
cars  must  not  exceed";  and,  third,  the  location  of  this 
limiting  point  on  the  railroad.  The  distances  in  the 
first  column  vary  by  increments  of  3  inches. 

213.  Track    Clearances. — The    principal    clearance 
on  double-,  or  more,  track  roads  is  the  inter-track  dis- 
tance.   The  longer  the  car  and  the  sharper  the  curve, 
the  greater  the  required  distance  between  tracks,  fast 
Pullman  trains  requiring  the  greatest  clearance.     The 
distance  between  centers  of  tracks  is  13  feet  0  inches  on 
main  line,  and  12  feet  0  inches  in  yards,  on  the  more 
important  railroads,  although  less  distances  than  these 
are  in  use. 

It  is  the  duty  of  the  section  foreman  to  see  that  no 
material  is  piled  along  the  main  track  at  a  less  distance 
than  five  feet  from  the  nearest  rail,  and  that  it  is  piled  in 
such  manner  that  it  cannot  fall  toward  the  track. 

The  clearances,  both  side  and  overhead,  of  all  bridges 
and  tunnels  are  governed  by  the  standards  of  the  rail- 
road, the  side  clearance  seldom  being  less  than  4  feet  2 
inches  from  gauge  of  rail,  and  the  headroom  less  than 
20  feet  from  the  top  of  rail. 

214.  Bridge  Warning. — When  the  clearance  is  not 
great  enough  to  allow  a  man  to  stand  on  top  of  a  freight 
car  without  danger  of  striking  the  overhead  structure, 
22  feet  or  more  above  the  top  of  rail,  bridge  warnings 
are  erected.     For  single-track  railroads  bridge  warnings 
are  built  about  as  shown  in  Fig.  116,  which  consists  of  a 
post  L  M  supporting  an  arm  0  a  by  means  of  the  brace 
N  P  and  the  guy  L  a.     The  suspended    parts   consist 


198 


RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


of  pieces  of  rope  b  c  three  feet  long,  which  are  suspended 
from  the  arm  0  a  by  heavy  wires  2J  feet  long.  The  ropes 
are  six  inches  apart  and  cover  a  space  eight  feet  wide, 
and  project  six  inches  below  the  level  e  f  of  the  lowest 
part  of  the  overhead  structure.  The  warnings  are 
placed  about  one  hundred  feet  on  each  side  of  the  struc- 
ture, and  the  trainman 
must  stoop  immediately 
after  the  ropes  strike  him. 
The  suspended  ropes  are 
designed  so  that  they  will 
hang  in  place  and  give  cer- 
tain warning  without  in- 
flicting injury.  When  there 
are  two  tracks  or  more, 
posts  are  planted  outside 
the  tracks  and  an  arrange- 
ment similar  to  the  above 
is  suspended  over  each 
track  from  a  wire  stretched 
between  the  posts. 

215.  Telegraph  Line.— 
A  thoroughly  maintained 
telegraph  line  is  essential 
to  the  operation  of  a  rail- 
road. The  telegraph  line  is  either  built  and  maintained  by 
a  company  subject  to  agreement  with  the  railroad,  or  by 
a  special  department  of  the  railroad.  When  the  width 
of  right-of-way  permits,  the  telegraph  poles  must  be 
placed  far  enough  from  the  track  to  prevent  obstructing 
the  track  if  blown  down  in  a  storm.  The  maintenance 


FIG.  116. 


MAINTENANCE   OP  WAY.  199 

of  the  telegraph  line  is  in  charge  of  a  foreman  and  a  gang 
of  experienced  men  who  make  all  repairs,  trim  branches 
of  trees  so  that  they  cannot  strike  the  wires,  and  keep 
the  line  in  good  working  order. 

It  is  the  duty  of  the  section  gang  to  pay  strict  atten- 
tion to  the  telegraph  wires,  make  any  small  repairs 
within  their  ability,  and  to  report  all  defects  promptly 
to  the  proper  authority. 

Telegraph  poles  are  numbered  consecutively  by  large, 
clear,  painted  numbers.  The  numbering  is  always 
according  to  some  system  by  which  the  location  of 
the  pole  is  known  from  the  number,  and  furnishes 
one  of  the  best  methods  of  locating  a  particular  point 
in  the  track. 

216.  Bridge  Watchman.* — Bridges  should  be  in- 
spected after  the  passage  of  each  train,  and  at  shorter 
intervals  if  trains  are  too  far  apart.  A  supply  of  water 
must  be  kept  on  the  bridge,  and  the  watchman  should 
follow  each  train  and  be  prepared  to  extinguish  fire 
promptly.  Hot  cinders  are  constantly  falling  from  the 
engine  and  form  a  constant  source  of  danger  to  all  frame 
track  structures.  The  piers  and  abutments  should  be 
kept  clean,  and  all  combustible  material  removed  to  a 
safe  distance  from  the  bridge.  The  watchman  should 
frequently  examine  all  the  timber  and  ironwork  of  the 
bridge  and  report  promptly  any  decay  or  defect.  He 
should  also  note  the  speed  of  passing  trains  and  report 
any  violation  of  the  speed  limit,  and  also  prevent  all 
unauthorized  persons  from  crossing  the  bridge.  When 
the  bridge  watchman  is  not  occupied  with  the  above 
*  Roadmaster  and  Foreman. 


200  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

duties,  he  is  kept  busy  at  such  other  duties  as  the  section 
foreman  may  direct. 

217.  Policing. — Policing  is  a  term  used  by  railroad 
men  to  express  the  keeping  of  the  right-of-way  in  good 
order,  and  consists  in  keeping  the  grass  and  weeds  cut, 
ditches  in  good  shape,  and  material  piled  in  the  proper 
manner.  Section  foremen  are  responsible  for  keeping 
everything  between  the  right-of-way  fences,  including 
the  fences  themselves,  in  proper  shape  and  condition. 
All  old  cross-ties  taken  from  the  track  must  be  gathered 
daily,  if  practicable,  and  piled  or  disposed  of  in  such 
manner  as  directed  by  the  supervisor,  and  may  be  used 
for  fence-posts,  firewood,  or  burned,  depending  upon 
their  condition.  All  old  bolts,  nuts,  spikes,  and  similar 
material  dropping  from  cars  should  be  collected  and  re- 
moved to  the  tool  house. 

After  grass  and  weeds  have  been  cut  they  should  be 
raked  together  and  burned.  Whenever  fires  occur  on 
the  tracks  or  adjoining  grounds,  they  must  be  promptly- 
extinguished,  and  if  caused  by  a  locomotive,  the  number 
of  the  train  must  be  reported  to  the  supervisor. 

To  sum  up,  the  foreman  must  see  that  everything  on 
his  section  is  up  to  regulations,  in  good  condition,  and 
presents  a  neat  appearance. 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY.  201 

ARTICLE  XVIII. 
TRACK  INSPECTION. 

218.  The  Supervisor. — The  duties  of  the  supervisor, 
or  roadmaster,  may  be  divided  into  two  classes,  viz., 
office  and  inspection  work.     The  office  work  to  a  great 
extent  consists  of  details  of  a  recurring  nature,  and  there 
should  be  an  experienced  office  force  to  handle  them. 
The  office  force  should  be  in  charge  of  an  experienced 
clerk,   thoroughly  familiar  with  all  the  details  of  the 
track  work  of  a  subdivision,  and  the  routine  office  work 
should  be  handled  in  such  a  manner  that  the  supervisor, 
while  thoroughly  familiar  with  what  is  taking  place  in  the 
office,  should  be  compelled  to  give  personal  attention  only 
to  the  larger  and  more  important  matters,  and  the  facts 
in  these  should  be  prepared  by  the  office  force  in  such 
a  manner  that  the  supervisor  can  dispose  of  them  intel- 
ligently in  the  shortest  possible  time.     This  arrangement 
will  allow  the  supervisor  to  be  out  on  his  subdivision 
the  greater  part  of  the  time,  and  give  him  the  opportun- 
ity to  keep  thoroughly  posted  as  to  the  condition  of  his 
subdivision  by  actual  observation.     There  is  no  uni- 
versal rule  governing  the  actual  number  of  times  the 
supervisor  must  inspect  his  division,  except    that   he 
must  get  over  his  division  often  enough  to  be  thoroughly 
familiar  with  the  condition  of  all  parts  of  it  at  all  times. 

219.  Inspection   by    the    Supervisor. — The   super- 
visor may  obtain  data  as  to  the  condition  of  the  track  by 
riding  on  the  engine  of  a  fast  train,  by  riding  on  the  rear 


202  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND    CONSTRUCTION. 

car  of  a  train,  and  by  walking  over  the  line.  It  is  neces- 
sary to  inspect  in  all  three  of  these  ways  in  order  to  get 
the  best  results. 

The  most  important  method  of  inspection  is  by  walk- 
ing over  the  line,  the  section  foreman  accompanying  the 
supervisor  over  his  own  section.  This  gives  the  super- 
visor a  chance  to  become  thoroughly  familiar  with  every 
foot  of  the  track,  to  become  thoroughly  acquainted  with 
the  foreman  and  familiar  with  his  method  of  work.  It 
also  gives  opportunity  to  give  detail  instruction  to  the 
foreman  and  to  make  any  necessary  changes  in  his 
methods,  with  the  result  that  the  amount  of  work  done 
will  be  increased  and  the  grade  of  the  work  will  be  im- 
proved. 

When  the  track  has  been  inspected  and  defects  rem- 
edied as  far  as  can  be  seen,  it  is  customary  for  the  super- 
visor to  make  a  trip  over  his  division  on  the  engine  of 
a  fast  passenger  train,  the  degree  of  smoothness  with 
which  the  engine  rides  being  the  principal  test  as  to  the 
condition  of  the  track.  The  location  and  probable 
nature  of  a  defect  are  noted,  and  steps  taken  to  remedy 
the  defect. 

Inspecting  the  track  from  the  rear  car  of  a  train  is  the 
easiest  method,  and  is  the  best  way  to  form  an  idea  of 
the  general  appearance  of  the  right-of-way  and  to  make 
a  casual  inspection,  but  care  must  be  taken  that  too 
much  dependence  is  not  placed  in  this  method  on  ac- 
count of  the  ease  with  which  it  can  be  done.  If  there  is 
not  time  to  walk  over  the  line,  it  is  better  to  make  the 
trip  on  a  track  velocipede.  The  more  walking  done  by 
the  supervisor,  the  better  the  discipline  and  work  of  the 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY.  203 

section  gangs,  particularly  if  the  men  do  not  know  just 
when  he  will  be  along.  All  workmen  keep  their  eye  on 
the  "boss,"  and  the  more  they  see  him,  the  better  they 
will  work. 

220.  Details  of  Inspection. — "  Roadmaster  and  Fore- 
man" divide  track  inspection  into  five  classes  and  ten 
parts  as  follows : 

Class  A:     1,  Alinement. 

2,  Surface. 

Class  B:     3,  Joints. 

4,  Spikes. 

Class  C :     5,  Switches. 

6,  Frogs. 

Class  D:    7,  Ballast. 

8,  Sleepers. 

Class  E:    9,  Ditches. 

10,  Cleanliness. 

221.  Alinement  and  Surface. — On  tangents  the  rails 
should  lie  in  perfectly  straight  lines  as  projected  on  a 
horizontal  plane,  or  sighted  by  a  plumb  line,  and  sym- 
metrically located  with  respect  to  the  center  line  markers; 
and  on  curves  the  rails  should  be  concentric  with  the 
curve  indicated  by  the  center  line  markers  and  sym- 
metrically placed  with  respect  to  the  markers.     Fore- 
men have  no  trouble  in  alining  track  on  tangent  and  a 
uniform  grade,  but  they  must  pay  strict  attention  to  the 
center  line  markers  both  in  hollows  and  on  humps  where 
the  grade  breaks.     At  the  P.  C.  and  P.  T.  of  a  simple 
curve  trackmen   almost   invariably   and  unconsciously 
form  a  short  transition  curve  in  endeavoring  to  prevent 


204  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

the  change  from  tangent  to  curve  or  vice  versa  from  ap- 
pearing abrupt;  nothing  but  a  well-marked  center  line 
will  prevent  this  from  becoming  excessive. 

Track  is  said  to  be  in  true  surface  when  the  top  of  the 
rail  forms  a  straight  line  on  tangents  when  projected  on  a 
vertical  plane,  and  has  the  proper  curvature  on  ease- 
ment curves,  and  when  the  corresponding  point  on  the 
companion  rail  of  the  track  has  the  same  elevation 
on  tangent,  or  the  proper  difference  of  elevation  on 
curves. 

222.  Joints  and  Spikes. — For  "broken  joints"  the 
joint  on  one  rail  should  be  nearly  opposite  the  middle  of 
the  companion  rail  of  the  track,  and  for  "  square  joints," 
the  joints  should  be  nearly  opposite  each  other.     The 
splice-bars,  rails,  and  bolts  should  be  kept  screwed  up  so 
that  the  joint  can  be  kept  in  alinement  and  surface  the 
same  as  the  rest  of  the  track;  and  the  proper  space  should 
be  maintained  between  the  ends  of  rails  so  that  the  track 
will  neither  be  pushed  out  of  line  in  hot  weather  nor 
leave  a  space  that  will  cause  the  joint  to  be  pounded  out 
of  surface  in  cold  weather. 

At  least  one  spike  is  required  on  -each  side  of  the  rail 
on  every  tie,  and  joints  should  be  double  spiked.  Spikes 
should  hold  the  rail  firmly  against  the  tie  and  should  be 
kept  driven  down  so  that  no  movement  between  the  tie 
and  rail  can  occur.  If  the  spikes  become  loose,  addi- 
tional spikes  should  be  driven. 

223.  Switches  and  Frogs. — Switches  should  receive 
constant  attention,  and  all  parts  kept  in  proper  con- 
dition   and    adjustment.     The  headblocks    should  be 
tamped  firm,  the  switch  stand  in  thorough  working  con- 


MAINTENANCE   OF  WAY.  205 

dition,  and  the  target  painted.     Damaged  parts  should 
be  replaced  before  they  cause  injury  to  adjacent  parts. 

Frogs  are  the  most  costly  and  most  vulnerable  part  of 
a  switch,  and  must  be  made  to  last  as  long  as  possible,  but 
must  be  replaced  as  soon  as  they  are  unfit  for  the  service 
required;  this  does  not  mean  that  they  are  totally  un- 
fit for  use,  as  a  frog  that  is  unfit  for  main  track  may  be 
plenty  good  enough  for  yard  use,  where  it  will  not  have 
to  stand  much  service. 

224.  Ballast,  Sleepers,  Ditches,  and  Cleanliness.— 
Ballast,  ditches,  and  cleanliness,  or  policing,  have  been 
discussed   in   previous   articles.     Sleepers,   or   ties,   are 
spaced  and  lined  according  to  the  rules  of  the  individ- 
ual railroad.     It  is  claimed  that  they  will  wear  best  if 
sorted  and  laid  in  uniform  sizes.     Decayed  and  badly 
cut  ties  should  be  promptly  removed.     Even  where  ties 
are  of  uniform  size  and  apparently  similar  in  all  respects, 
some  will  wear  out  considerably  before  others  even  when 
laid  in  the  same  stretch  of  track. 

225.  General  Inspection. — Tt  is  customary,  partic- 
ularly on  Eastern  railroads,  to  have  an  "annual  inspec- 
tion," when  the  principal  officers  of  the  road  inspect  the; 
entire  system.     Prizes  are  awarded  to  the  division,  sub- 
division, and  section  having  the  best  track,  attention 
being  paid  to  all  the  principal  points  in  If  220.     Efforts 
are  made  by  every  supervisor  and  foreman  to  have  the 
best  piece  of  track,  the  winners  not  only  receiving  a  cash 
prize,  but  a  far  greater  benefit  from  the  increased  chances 
of  promotion. 


CHAPTER  VI. 
RAILROAD  CONSTRUCTION. 


ARTICLE  XIX. 
THE  ENGINEER  CORPS. 

226.  The  Preliminary  and  Location  Corps. — On  pre- 
liminary and  location  the  field  engineer  corps  is  com- 
posed of  three  parties,  viz.,  the  transit,  level,  and  topog- 
raphy party,  all  in  charge  of  the  assistant  engineer. 
The  transit  party  consists  of  the  transitman,  head-chain- 
man,  back-  (or  rear-)  chainman,  one  or  more  axemen, 
and  the  back-flagman.  The  level  party  consists  of  the 
levelman  and  level-rodman ;  and  the  topography  party 
consists  of  the  topographer  and  two  tapemen.  The 
duties  of  each  of  these  men  are  described  in  the  "  En- 
gineer's Fieldbook,"  and  it  is  not  necessary  to  repeat 
them  here.  The  relative  rank  of  the  members  of  the 
party  is  well  established  for  all  but  the  topographer,  and, 
having  out  the  topographer,  they  rank  in  the  following 
order:  (1)  assistant  engineer:  (2)  transitman;  (3)  level- 
man; the  balance  of  the  party  having  no  regular  order 
of  seniority,  on  special  occasions  they  being  placed  in 
charge  of  any  part  of  the  work,  depending  upon  their 

206 


RAILROAD   CONSTRUCTION.  207 

ability  and  their  assignment  by  the  assistant  engineer. 
The  relative  rank  of  the  topographer  depends  upon  the 
notions  of  the  chief  engineer.  By  some  chief  engineers 
the  topographer  is  made  practically  independent  of  the 
rest  of  the  field  corps  and  reports  directly  to  the  office, 
and  in  other  instances  may  rank  anywhere  from  just 
below  the  assistant  engineer  to  junior  to  the  levelman. 
In  all  well-regulated  field  corps,  in  addition  to  the  as- 
sistant engineer,  the  transitman,  levelman,  and  topog- 
rapher should  be  theoretically  trained  engineers;  and 
in  many  cases  the  head-chainman  and  level-rodman  are 
young  graduates,  thus  giving  a  party  that  will  never  be 
at  a  loss  for  instrument-men. 

227.  Referencing  the  Final  Location. — After  all 
necessary  lines  have  been  run,  topography  taken,  the 
line  adjusted  in  every  detail,  the  line  that  is  shown  to  be 
the  best  possible  through  the  territory  in  question  is 
adopted  and  called  the  final  location,  the  line  being  re- 
run to  take  out  all  equations  and  give  continuous  sta- 
tions. The  last  field  work  to  be  done  by  the  location 
party  is  to  thoroughly  reference  all  the  principal  hubs,  or 
transit  points,  on  the  line.  This  is  necessary  in  order  to 
relocate  the  line  in  either  of  the  two  following  cases: 

(1)  in  case  construction  should  not  follow  immediately 
after  location,  and  the  line  be  partly  obliterated;    or 

(2)  in  order  to  replace  the  line  when  part  of  it  has 
been  dug  up  or  covered  over  in  the  course  of  construc- 
tion. 

In  some  cases  it  requires  considerable  ingenuity  on  the 
part  of  the  instrument-man  to  reference  a  point  so  that 
the  point  may  be  relocated.  In  Fig.  117  is  shown  one 


208 


RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


of  the  most  complete  methods  of  referencing  a  point,  the 
point  being  the  P.  C.  sta.  121  -f  11.1,  the  line  running  in 
the  direction  indicated  by  the  arrow.  The  lines  A  B  and 
D  C  should  cross  each  other  at  an  angle  as  near  90 
degrees  as  possible,  which  gives  the  most  definite  inter- 
section. The  points  A,  B,  C,  and  D  must  be  placed  so 
that  they  are  in  no  danger  of  being  knocked  out,  so  that 
the  transit  can  be  set  up  over  at  least  one  point  on  each 
line,  and  also  so  that  they  can  be  readily  found,  properly 


,''     Pine 


P.T. 


Mapl 


FIG.  117. 


FIG.  118. 


marked  guard  stakes  oemg  set  near  them,  and  notches 
cut  in  the  fence.  The  bearings  and  distances  are  taken, 
as  they  may  aid  considerably  in  relocating  a  point, 
particularly  if  the  survey  is  old. 

228.  To  Relocate  a  Point. — Suppose  we  have  the 
notes  and  sketch  in  Fig.  117  and  the  point  121  +11.1 
has  been  destroyed ;  the  general  method  of  relocating  it 
would  be  as  follows:  By  means  of  the  sketch  and  data 
the  points  A,  B,  C,  and  D  are  located;  set  the  transit 
up  over  B,  sight  to  A,  and  place  stakes  and  tacks  at  E  and 


RAILROAD   CONSTRUCTION.  209 

F  on  each  side  of  the  line  D  C,  then  set  up  at  C  and  sight 
to  D,  locating  the  point  0  where  the  line  of  sight  C  D 
crosses  a  string  stretched  between  E  and  F;  this  inter- 
section will  be  the  required  point  121  -f  11.1. 

Another  method  of  referencing  is  shown  in  Fig.  118. 
One  of  the  most  important  points  to  keep  in  mind  in  all 
work  of  this  kind  is  to  take  notes  as  complete  as  possible. 
It  only  takes  a  few  minutes'  additional  time  to  read  the 
magnetic  bearings  and  make  a  complete  sketch,  but  poor 
notes  may  cause  the  loss  of  a  much  greater  length  of 
time  in  relocating. 

229.  Slope-stakes  and  Cross-sections. — Slope-stakes 
are  stakes  set  at  the  points  where  the  slopes  of  the  cut 
or  fill  cut  the  original  ground  surface.  Cross-sections 
record  the  differences  of  elevation  of  the  ground  surface 
at  corresponding  distances  out  from  the  center  line  and 
normal  to  the  center  line.  If  the  cross-sections  are 
taken  in  order  to  determine  the  difference  in  the  amounts 
of  cut  and  fill  in  a  proposed  shift  of  the  line,  the  length  of 
the  cross-section  is  determined  by  the  distance  the  line 
may  be  shifted.  If  the  line  is  finally  located,  the  slope- 
stakes  may  be  set  and  the  cross-section  taken  at  the 
same  time,  and  if  the  slopes  are  uniform  from  the  center 
stake  to  each  of  the  slope-stakes,  no  intermediate  cross- 
section  notes  are  necessary  in  order  to  plot  the  cross- 
section.  In  table  XVIII  is  shown  a  convenient  method 
of  keeping  slope-stake  and  cross-section  notes  in  a 
transit  book.  The  cross-section  notes  should  be  plotted 
in  a  cross-section  book  made  of  cross-section  paper,  with 
ten  divisions  to  the  inch.  In  Fig.  119  is  shown  the  cross- 
section  of  sta.  183  as  it  appears  in  the  cross-section  book. 
14 


210 


RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


The  areas  and  volumes  are  also  recorded  in  the  cross- 
section  book,  with  the  corresponding  cross-sections. 

TABLE  XVIII. 


STA. 

a 
% 
p 

GRADE 

END 

AREAS, 

CUT, 
Cu. 

FILL, 
Cu. 

L                    OR 

g 

SQ.  FT. 

YDS. 

YDS. 

O 

183 

388.5 

381.8 

173.8 

+  5.7   +6.1    +6 

i.7  +7.8  +8.6 

14.7     9.0                  9.0     17.6 

488.5 

182 

387.4 

381.3 

90.0 

+  2.0              +6.!             +6.1 

11.9 

15.1 

The  explanation  of  the  method  of  setting  slope-stakes 
and  taking  cross-sections  will  be  found  in  detail  in  all 
railroad  engineers'  handbooks. 


FIG.  119. 

230.  The  Residency. — The  line  to  be  built  is  divided 
into  sections  from  about  six  to  twelve  miles  in  length, 
depending  upon  whether  the  work  is  heavy  or  light,  and 
these  sections  are  called  residencies.  The  name  probably 
comes  from  the  fact  that  each  of  the  sections  is  in  charge 
of  a  corps  of  engineers  who  reside  on  the  work.  The 
resident  corps,  commonly  called  residency  party,  con- 
sists of  three  or  more  men,  the  chief  of  whom  is  uni- 


RAILROAD   CONSTRUCTION.  211 

versally  called  the  resident  engineer;  the  titles  of  the 
balance  of  the  party  are,  however,  subject  to  consider- 
able variation,  as  shown  in  the  following  arrangement  of 
parties : 

Resident  Engineer  Resident  Engineer  Resident  Engineer 
Transitman  Assistant  Engineer  Instrument-man 

Levelman  Rodman  Axeman 

Rodman  Axeman 

The  size  of  the  party  depends  upon  the  nature  of  the 
work  and  the  custom  of  the  railroad,  but  they  all  agree 
in  having  at  least  two  men  who  can  handle  instruments. 
In  addition  to  the  above  members,  an  inspector  is  added 
when  there  is  masonry  of  importance  to  be  built. 

The  residency  headquarters  should  be  on  the  line,  and 
where  accommodations  cannot  otherwise  be  obtained,  a 
camp,  more  or  less  temporary  in  construction,  must  be 
maintained.  The  headquarters  should  not  only  con- 
tain living  quarters  for  the  engineers,  but  also  a  com- 
plete office  outfit. 

Other  things  being  equal,  the  residency  headquarters 
should  be  located  near  the  center  of  the  residency,  so 
that  all  parts  of  the  work  may  be  reached  in  the  shortest 
possible  time;  but  in  some  cases  it  will  be  more  con- 
venient to  locate  it  at  one  end  of  the  residency,  in  order 
to  be  more  accessible  from  division  headquarters. 

231.  Duties  of  the  Residency  Party. — As  soon  as 
the  residency  party  is  appointed  and  located  it  must 
secure  complete  notes  of  the  survey  of  their  part  of  the 
line,  including  a  copy  of  the  transit  and  level  notes,  and 
the  map.  There  should  be  a  copy  of  the  profile  for  each 


212  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

instrument-man  and  one  for  the  office.  The  line  must 
be  referenced  as  described  in  If  227  before  any  grading  is 
done.  The  referencing  is  usually  done  by  the  location 
party,  but  it  may  be  necessary  for  the  residency  party  to 
reference  additional  points. 

After  the  residency  headquarters  is  fixed  up  and  the 
copy  of  the  necessary  data  obtained,  the  first  work  of  the 
party  is  the  setting  of  slope-stakes.  Slope-stakes  are 
necessary  before  any  excavation  work  can  be  done.  As 
the  first  duty  of  the  contractor  is  to  clear  and  grub  the 
right-of-way,  it  is  usually  possible  to  set  the  slope-stakes 
on  the  parts  of  the  line  that  are  comparatively  clear,  and 
slope-stake  the  balance  of  the  line  after  the  clearing  and 
grubbing  have  been  finished. 

232.  Situation  Plans. — Plans  for  all  openings  larger 
than  a  box  culvert,  where  masonry  is  to  be  used,  are 
usually  worked  up  at  division  headquarters.  In  order 
to  supply  the  necessary  data  for  this  purpose  the  resi- 
dency party  must,  as  soon  as  practicable,  make  -up 
situation  plans  and  forward  them  to  headquarters.  If, 
for  instance,  a  situation  plan  is  to  be  made  for  a  bridge 
over  a  stream,  a  topographical  map  of  the  ground  and 
stream  covered  by  the  bridge  abutments  and  piers  is 
drawn  t'o  a  scale  of  20  feet  to  1  inch,  showing  the  eleva- 
tion of  the  banks  and  of  the  bottom  of  the  stream  by 
one-foot  contours,  and  also  the  depth  to  solid  rock  at 
points  where  piers  and  abutments  are  to  be  built.  If 
the  bridge  is  too  long  to  show  to  this  scale,  a  plan  show- 
ing the  general  outline  and  data  may  be  drawn  to  a 
scale  of  50  or  100  feet  to  1  inch,  and  a  situation  plan 
made  for  the  site  of  each  abutment  and  pier  to  the  scale 


RAILROAD   CONSTRUCTION.  213 

of  20  or  possibly  10  feet  to  1  inch.  With  the  aid  of  the 
situation  plan  the  detail  plans  for  the  construction  of  the 
masonry  can  be  drawn.  These  plans  are  sent  to  the 
resident  engineer,  who  stakes  them  out,  and  through  his 
inspector  supervises  the  work. 

233.  Monthly  Estimates. — It  is  the  duty  of  the 
residency  party  to  furnish  monthly  estimates  of  the  work 
completed  at  the  time  of  taking  the  estimate.  The 
measurements  are  made  as  close  to  the  end  of  the  month 
as  possible,  and  must  be  forwarded  to  division  head- 
quarters not  later  than  the  last  day  of  the  month.  In 
order  to  furnish  these  estimates  cross-sections  must  be 


•4-s.r       +M 


FIG.  120. 

run  over  all  the  line  where  work  is  in  progress.  After 
the  slope-stakes  are  set  the  notes  are  plotted  in  the  book 
especially  designed  for  the  purpose  (1f  229).  When  the 
monthly  cross-sections  are  taken,  they  are  plotted  over 
the  original  section  at  that  point,  and  the  area  of  the 
excavated  shaded  portion  in  Fig.  120  is  determined,  and 
from  these  areas  the  total  amount  excavated  is  com- 
puted. The  portion  of  the  line  where  embankments  are 
being  made  is  measured  and  plotted  in  the  same  way. 
The  last  estimate,  minus  the  previous  monthly  estimate, 
gives  the  number  of  cubic  yards  of  material  excavated  or 
filled  during  the  month,  and  forms  the  basis  upon  which 


214  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

a  part  payment,  85  or  90  per  cent.,  is  made  to  the  con- 
tractor. Monthly  estimates  are  made  on  all  work  done 
by  the  contractor — clearing  and  grubbing,  excavation, 
masonry,  trestling  completed,  and  borrow.  Overhaul 
is  usually  left  until  a  portion  of  the  line  is  com- 
pleted. 

234.  Progress  Profiles. — As  soon  as  the  monthly 
estimates  are  finished,  the  residency  party  plots  up  two 
progress  profiles,  one  for  their  own  information  and  one 
for  division  headquarters,  the  latter  being  sent  back  and 
forth  for  the  purpose.  The  general  idea  of  a  progress 
profile  is  shown  in  Fig.  121.  The  portion  A  excavated 


FIG.  121. 

in  the  first  month  is  deposited  in  the  embankments  A', 
for  the  second  month  from  B  to  B',  and  so  on,  until  the 
cut  is  finished.  Information  as  to  the  state  of  com- 
pleteness of  all  other  work,  such  as  culverts,  etc.,  is  also 
placed  on  the  progress  profile.  The  progress  profile 
enables  the  engineer  to  judge  whether  or  not  the  work  is 
being  pushed  at  a  rate  that  will  finish  it  within  the 
specified  time.  If  it  shows  the  contractor  to  be  too  slow 
in  his  method  of  working,  the  contractor  is  ordered  to 
put  on  more  force.  The  work  done  in  each  month  is 
shown  by  tinting  that  portion  of  the  profile  with  a  color 
corresponding  to  the  month;  as,  for  example,  the  follow- 
ing: 


RAILROAD   CONSTRUCTION.  215 

January Cobalt  Blue 

February Vermilion 

March Chrome  Yellow 

April Venetian  Red 

May Sepia 

June Olive  Green 

July Van  Dyke  Brown 

August Antwerp  Blue 

September Chrome  Orange 

October Payne's  Gray 

November Scarlet  Lake 

December Burnt  Sienna 

The  progress  profile  gives  the  quickest  and  surest  way 
of  estimating  the  condition  of  the  work  at  any  particular 
time. 


ARTICLE  XX. 
CUTS  AND  FILLS. 

235.  Definitions. — Cut,  or  excavation,  is  the  term 
applied  to  the  material  above  the  grade  line  G  L,  Fig. 
121,  which  must  be  removed  in  order  to  form  the  road- 
bed of  the  railroad. 

Fill,  or  embankment,  is  the  term  applied  to  the  mate- 
rial that  must  be  deposited  in  the  hollows  below  the  grade 
line  in  order  to  form  the  roadbed,  or  subgrade. 

When  the  material  is  excavated  from  the  cut,  it  is 
carried  each  way  from  the  center  of  the  cut  and  deposited 
in  the  adjacent  fills.  When  the  cut  is  not  sufficient  to 
complete  the  fills,  it  is  necessary  to  obtain  additional 
material  for 'the  purpose,  and  this  additional  material  is 
called  borrow.  If  the  cuts  should  give  more  material 


216  EAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

than  is  required  to  complete  the  fills,  the  excess  material 
is  called  waste. 

The  line  G  L,  Fig.  121,  drawn  on  the  profile  represent- 
ing the  elevation  and  longitudinal  slope  of  the  finished 
roadbed,  is  called  the  grade,  or  gradient,  grade  being  used 
in  the  United  States  and  gradient  in  England.  The 
grade  line  is  drawn  at  the  elevation  of  the  base  of  rail. 
Grades  are  expressed  in  percentage  of  rise  and  fall;  if 
a  grade  rises  0.3  foot  in  100  feet,  it  is  called  a  +  0.3 
per  cent,  grade,  and  if  it  falls  0.5  foot  in  100  feet,  it  is 
called  a  —  0.5  per  cent,  grade. 

The  subgrade  is  the  top  of  the  foundation  upon  which 
the  ballast  rests,  and  is  the  surface  represented  on  the 
profile  by  a  line  parallel  to  and  a  certain  distance  below 
the  grade  line.  The  distance  between  the  grade  and  the 
subgrade  is  governed  by  the  depth  of  ballast  that  is  to 
be  used,  and  may  vary  from  7  inches,  the  thickness  of  a 
tie,  to  2  feet,  the  greatest  depth  of  ballast  that  is  likely 
to  be  used;  this  distance  between  the  grade  and.  the 
subgrade  must  be  decided  before  any  construction  work 
is  done.  The  main  duty  of  the  residency  engineers  is  to 
see  that  the  excavations  and  embankments  are  made  in 
the  proper  manner  and  finished  to  the  proper  surface, 
together  with  all  masonry,  etc.,  necessary  thereto,  and 
to  furnish  an  accurate  estimate  of  the  quantities  and 
cost. 

236.  Classification. — Contracts  for  the  completion 
of  the  subgrade  are  let  in  three  ways,  viz.,  (1)  without 
classification;  (2)  with  classification;  and  (3)  by  force 
account.  In  a  minority  of  cases  work  is  let  without 
.classification.  This  consists  in  agreeing  on  a  fixed  price 


RAILROAD   CONSTRUCTION.  217 

per  cubic  yard  of  excavation  for  all  the  excavation  on  the 
line,  no  variation  in  price  being  made  for  different  kinds 
of  material.  The  contractor  goes  over  the  line;  exam- 
ines the  material,  and  with  the  aid  of  a  profile  that  is 
furnished  him  estimates  the  average  price  at  which  he 
can  complete  the  work  at  a  profit  and  at  the  same  time 
bid  lower  than  competing  contractors.  A  very  small 
percentage  of  railroad  work  has  been,  done  in  this  way, 
owing  to  the  great  uncertainty  and  chance  of  loss,  but 
with  improved  excavating  machinery  and  outfit  it  is 
probable  that  a  greater  percentage  of  railroad  work  will 
be  done  in  this  way  in  the  future,  particularly  where 
the  new  line  lies  near  other  work  that  has  been  com- 
pleted and  a  fairly  accurate  estimate  of  the  cost  can  be 
made. 

When  work  is  let  with  classification,  it  is  divided  into 
three  and  sometimes  four  classes,  viz.,  earth,  loose  rock, 
and  solid  rock,  or  earth,  hard  pan,  loose  rock,  and  solid 
rock,  the  contractor  agreeing  to  do  each  class  of  excava- 
tion at  a  specified  price  per  cubic  yard,  the  amount  of 
each  class  of  material  being  measured  as  it  is  excavated. 

237.  Earth. — Each  railroad  has  its  own  arbitrary 
rules  for  dividing  the  excavated  material  into  the  differ- 
ent classes,  and  the  classification  on  some  railroads 
varies  materially  from  the  classification  on  other  rail- 
roads, but  this  causes  no  hardship  to  the  contractor  be- 
cause he  is  furnished  a  copy  of  the  specifications  before 
bidding. 

Earth  includes  loam,  clay,  sand,  gravel,  decomposed 
rock  and  slate,  and  boulders  not  greater  than  one  cubic 
foot.  Earth  is  often  defined  as  "anv  material  that  can 


218  RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCITON. 

be  plowed  by  a  two-horse  plow  and  scraped/'  some  rail- 
roads specifying  a  four-horse  plow. 

The  principal  operations  in  excavating  earth  are 
loosening,  loading,  hauling,  and  spreading.  In  addition 
to  the  men,  teams,  and  implements  necessary  to  do  this, 
there  are  expenses  due  to  keeping  the  roadway  over 
which  the  material  is  hauled  in  repair,  repairs  to  im- 
plements, etc.,  and  superintendence.  In  ordinary  earthy 
materials,  if  the  fills  are  not  too  long,  the  cheapest  method 
is  to  use  plows  to  loosen  the  material,  and  drag-  or 
wheel-scrapers  to  carry  and  spread  it.  The  most  ex- 
pensive method  is  loading  the  material  into  wagons  by 
hand  and  hauling  it  into  the  fills;  this  method  is  neces- 
sary when  the  haul  is  long. 

Earth  excavation  usually  costs  from  15  to  20  cents 
per  cubic  yard.  The  cost  of  all  excavation  depends 
upon  the  amount  of  work  to  be  .done,  because  the  first 
cost  of  the  necessary  outfit,  or  even  of  moving  the  out- 
fit to  the  job,  will  be  less  in  proportion  the  greater  the 
amount  of  work  to  be  done. 

238.  Hardpan. — Hardpan  has  been  defined  as  "the 
more  or  less  firmly  consolidated  detrital  material  which 
sometimes  underlies  a  superficial  covering  of  soil,"  and 
also  as  "any  bed  of  mingled  clay  and  sand  or  pebbles, 
if  firmly  compacted."     It  sometimes  closely  resembles 
conglomerate  rock  in  general  appearance.     When  mate- 
rial of. this  formation  can  be  plowed  with  a  four-horse 
plow,  it  is  usually  classed  as  earth;  but  when  it  cannot 
be  plowed,  it  is  classed  either  as  hardpan  or  as  loose 
rock,  depending  upon  the  specifications. 

239.  Loose  Rock. — "Loose  rock  shall  include  shale, 


RAILROAD    CONSTRUCTION.  219 

slate,  coal,  soft  friable  sandstone,  cemented  gravel,  or 
conglomerate  rock;  stratified  limestone  in  layers  of  six 
inches  or  less,  separated  by  strata  of  clay;  masses  of 
boulders  or  detached  rocks,  free  from  earth,  in  which  the 
average  size  of  the  boulders  or  detached  rocks  is  not  less 
than  one  cubic  foot,  nor  more  than  one  cubic  yard ;  and 
masses  of  earth  mixed  with  loose  stone  and  boulders  of 
one  cubic  foot  or  more  average  size,  wherein  the  propor- 
tion of  rock  to  the  whole  mass  is  more  than  one-half." 
The  railroad  that  has  the  above  specification  does  not 
have  hardpan  in  its  specifications,  but  the  hardpan  is 
covered  by  the  phrase  "  cemented  gravel." 

240.  Solid  Rock. — Two  specifications  for  solid  rock 
are  as  follows:  " Solid  rock  will  include  all  rock  in  place, 
which  rings  under  the  hammer,  in  masses  of  more  than 
one  cubic  yard,  with  the  exception  of  stratified  limestone 
described  in  the  specifications  for  loose  rock."  And, 
"  solid  rock  shall  include  all  rock  occurring  in  masses 
which,  in  the  judgment  of  the  engineer,  may  be  best 
removed  by  blasting."  It  is  very  difficult  to  write  a 
specification  for  solid  rock  which  will  fit  all  parts  of  a 
line  without  variation.  In  the  first  specification  the 
clause  "rings  under  the  hammer"  is  very  severe,  and  in 
the  second  specification  the  phrase  "maybe  best  re- 
moved by  blasting"  should  never  be  used,  as  a  judicious 
use  of  powder  may  assist  materially  in  excavating  any 
material,  even  some  forms  of  earth.  To  classify  rock 
equitably  requires  sound  judgment  on  the  part  of  the 
engineer,  and  is  a  pregnant  cause  of  dispute  between  the 
engineer  and  the  contractor. 

Earth,  loose  rock,  and  solid  rock  are  often  found  in  the 


220  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

same  cut,  and  the  residency  party  is  kept  busy  running 
cross-sections  and  resetting  slope-stakes.  In  this  case 
the  cross-section  of  the  finished  cut  will  be  as  in  Fig.  122, 
the  slopes  A  E  and  B  F  being  1  on  1,  or  1  on  1J,  and 
G  K  and  H  L  4  on  1,  depending  upon  the  material. 
First,  the  slope-stakes  A  and  B  are  set,  the  earth  is 
cleared  off  to  the  loose  rock  C  D,  and  the  cross-section 
C  D  is  run  and  the  amount  of  earth  computed;  then  the 
loose  rock  is  removed  down  to  the  solid  rock  E  F,  the 
cross-section  E  F  run,  and  the  amount  of  loose  rock 
computed;  then  the  slope-stakes  G  and  H  are  set,  and 


FIG.  122. 

the  solid  rock  excavated  and  computed.     The  berms 
E  G  and  H  F  should  be  at  least  four  feet  wide. 

241.  Fills  or  Embankments. — Other  things  being 
equal,  the  grade  is  so  placed  on  the  profile  that  the  cuts 
and  fills  balance,  or  just  enough  material  is  excavated  to 
make  the  embankments.  It  is  obligatory  on  the  part  of 
the  contractor  to  excavate  the  cuts  at  the  contracted 
price  per  cubic  yard  and  haul  the  excavated  material 
and  make  the  fill  without  additional  charge,  provided  the 
haul  is  not  greater  than  a  specified  distance.  The  con- 
tractor must  also  place  the  material  in  the  fill  in  the 
specified  manner.  This  may  be  specified  in  any  one  of  a 


RAILROAD   CONSTRUCTION.  221 

number  of  ways,  viz.,  spread  the  earth  in  layers  and 
drive  over  it  as  much  as  possible,  thus  compacting  it. 
Usually  the  contractor  is  allowed  to  dump  the  material 
into  the  fill  in  the  manner  most  economical  to  him,  pro- 
vided, of  course,  there  is  no  good  reason  to  the  contrary, 
and  then  add  additional  material,  if  necessary,  after  the 
embankment  has  settled. 

242.  Borrow  and  Waste. — As  stated  in  If  235,  borrow 
is  the  term  applied  to  the  material  necessary  to  finish 
the  fill  when  the  cut  is  insufficient.     If  there  is  rock  in 
the  excavations,  it  is  usually  more  economical  to  borrow 
to  make  the  fills,  than  it  is  to  lower  the  grade  line  so  that 
the  cuts  and  fills  will  balance,  particularly  if  earth  borrow 
is  convenient.     As  the  contractor  is  paid  only  for  ex- 
cavation, there  should  be  no  waste  except  where  ab- 
solutely unavoidable.     Waste  may  be  necessary  in  order 
to  get  the  required  grade  and  alinement  over  the  line  as 
a  whole.     Waste  is  usually  deposited  along  the  side  of  a 
fill,  so  that  later  it  may  be  used  for  an  additional  track. 

243.  Borrow  Pits. — A  borrow  pit  is  the  hole  from 
which  borrow  has  been  taken:   it  is  staked  out  by  the 
engineer  and  cross-sections  taken  over  the  ground  be- 
fore any  borrow  is  taken  out.     The  contractor  is  required 
to  leave  the  pit  as  symmetrical  as  possible,  so  that  its 
measurement  will  be  simplified,  and  is  paid  for  the  num- 
ber of  cubic  yards  removed.     In  case  of  leaving  an  ir- 
regularly shaped  hole  difficult  to  measure,  if  the  engineer 
so  decides,  the  contractor  may  be  compelled  to  accept 
the  yardage  found  in  the  fill  after  settlement,  thus  losing 
the  amount  of  shrinkage.     If  the  cuts  adjacent  to  the 
fill  are  earth,  it  may  be  specified  that  the  borrow  shall  be 


222 


RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


made  from  the  cuts,  the  additional  width  being  used 
later  for  an  additional  track.  Borrow  pits,  Fig.  123,  are 
always  located  as  near  the  embankment  as  possible  to 
save  haul;  where  they  run  parallel  to  the  embankment, 
the  top  of  the  slope  of  the  borrow  pit  B  should  not  come 
closer  to  the  toe  of  slope  of  the  embankment  A  than  10 
or  12  feet,  and  if  the  embankment  is  likely  to  be  widened 
for  another  track,  the  berm  A  B  should  be  wide  enough 
to  leave  the  10  or  12  feet  after  the  embankment  has  been 
widened. 

244.  Shrinkage. — When    earth    is    excavated    and 

dumped  loosely,  it  makes, 
while  hi  the  loose  state,  a 
greater  bulk  than  it  occu- 
pied before  excavation. 
But  after  it  has  settled  and 
/  compacted  it  makes  a  less 


FjG.  123.  bulk,  usually,  than  it  occu- 

pied    before     excavation ; 

this  is  termed  shrinkage.  Different  earthy  materials  shrink 
by  different  amounts ;  some  materials  will  make  as  much 
fill  as  they  originally  occupied,  but  on  the  average  earth 
is  considered  to  shrink  10  per  cent.  The  length  of  time  it 
takes  earth  to  shrink  the  full  amount  (to  a  stable  volume) 
depends  principally  upon  the  amount  of  compacting  it 
gets  while  being  placed  in  the  fill  and  the  amount  of  water 
that  gets  into  it  while  in  a  loose  state.  When  embank- 
ments are  made  by  dumping  in  loose  material,  they  are 
usually  made  high  enough  to  allow  them  to  shrink  the 
full  amount  and  still  be  on  grade,  Fig.  124.  The  work 
is  not  accepted  and  measured  by  the  engineer  until,  in 


UNIVERSITY 

OF  ' 

CONSTRUCTION.  223 


his  judgment,  it  has  become  solid.  The  railroad  com- 
pany is  on  the  safe  side  in  this  matter,  as  the  10  or  15 
per  cent,  of  the  estimate  which  is  held  back  is  not  paid 
until  the  entire  road  is  completed,  and  by  that  time  all 
the  fills  have  had  sufficient  time  and  rain  to  become  solid. 
245.  Swell  of  Rock. — Solid  rock  when  excavated  and 
placed  in  a  fill  always  increases  in  volume;  the  amount 
of  increase  of  volume,  or  swell,  depending  upon  the  sizes 
into  which  it  is  broken.  If  stone  is  broken  into  small 
pieces  of  uniform  size,  the  broken  stone  may  contain  as 
high  as  50  per  cent,  of  voids,  or  the  original  solid  rock 
would  make  double  the  amount  when  placed  in  the  fill. 


FIG.  124. 


If  the  pieces  vary  in  size,  the  percentage  of  voids  will  be 
less,  so  it  seems  reasonable  to  assume  that  solid  rock  will 
swell  50  per  cent.  It  is  very  difficult  in  some  cases  to 
estimate  the  amount  of  fill  a  rock  cut  will  make,  particu- 
larly a  side  hill  cut  along  a  stream.  The  contractor  is 
paid  to  make  the  excavation,  and  his  endeavor  is  to  get 
the  material  out  of  the  cut  in  the  quickest  and  easiest  way, 
and  it  takes  eternal  vigilance  on  the  part  of  the  resident 
engineer  to  keep  the  contractor  from  blowing  a  large 
portion  of  the  material  into  the  stream  by  the  use  of  ex- 
cessive charges  of  powder.  In  some  cases  the  contractor 
will  deliberately  blow  the  material  away  and  make  good 


224  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

the  deficiency  in  the  fill  by  borrow  at  his  own  expense, 
provided,  of  course,  the  engineer  compels  him  to  replace 
the  wasted  material. 

246.  Sections. — Before  the  work  is  let  to  the  con- 
tractors, in  fact,  when  the  cost  of  the  line  is  estimated, 
the  line  is  divided  into  sections  about  one  mile  long,  but 
they  sometimes  vary  in  length  from  4000  to  7000  feet. 
The  sections  are  so  placed  that,  as  far  as  possible,  the  cuts 
will  balance  the  fills.  Fig.  125  shows  section  4;  every 
yard  of  excavation  between  the  section  posts  should  go 
into  the  fills  in  this  section.  The  profile  which  is  given 
the  contractor  when  he  goes  over  the  line  to  get  data 
upon  which  to  base  his  bid  has  these  sections  marked  on 


FIG.  125. 

it,  together  with  the  probable  quantities,  so  that  he  can 
estimate  the  amount  of  overhaul,  if  any,  and  the  number 
of  teams,  etc.,  required;  he  then  bids  for  the  work  in 
certain  sections.  Although  there  is  always  a  clause  in 
the  contract  allowing  the  chief  engineer  to  make  changes 
in  the  plans  at  any  time,  it  would  cause  trouble  to  change 
section  limits  after  the  contract  has  been  let,  if  the  con- 
tractor thought  "he  was  being  ruined"  by  the  change,  as 
he  is  very  liable  to  claim. 

247.  Overhaul. — It  is  always  stipulated  in  the  con- 
tract that  the  excavated  material  shall  be  hauled  a 
certain  distance  without  extra  charge;  this  distance, 


RAILROAD   CONSTRUCTION.  225 

called  free-haul,  is  usually  500  feet,  but  in  some  cases  it  is 
greater.  Assuming  the  free-haul  to  be  500  feet,  when  the 
material  must  be  hauled  more  than  500  feet,  the  excess 
of  distance  over  500  feet  is  called  overhaul,  and  is  paid  for 
at  the  rate  of  one  or  one  and  one-half  cents  per  cubic 
yard  per  100  feet  of  overhaul,  in  addition  to  the  con- 
tracted price  per  cubic  yard  for  excavation. 

There  are  two  methods  of  computing  the  distance 
and  amount  of  overhaul,  both  of  which  are  in  general 
use.  In  Fig.  126  the  excavation  B  F  is  to  be  placed  in 
the  embankment  B  C ;  let  g  and  gf  be  the  centers  of  grav- 
ity of  the  volumes  F  D  and  E  C  respectively,  and  let 
them  be  projected  on  the  grade  line  at  G  and  G'.  The 


FIG    126. 

first  method  is  to  excavate  the  part  B  D  and  make  the 
fill  B  E  so  that  the  distance  D  E  equals  the  free-haul. 
Then  the  mass  F  D  is  hauled  to  E  C,  and  the  distance  of 
overhaul  will  be  G  G' — D  E,  and  the  amount  of  the 
overhaul  will  be  the  product  of  the  volume  F  D,  the 
distance  of  overhaul  and  the  price  of  the  overhaul  per 
yard  per  hundred  feet.  For  example,  if  the  volume  of 
F  D  is  800  cubic  -yards,  the  distance  of  overhaul  320  feet, 
and  the  rate  one  cent  per  yard,  then  the  cost  of  the  over- 
haul will  be 

800  X  3.20  X  .01  =  $25.60. 

In  the  second  method  the  cut  B  F,  Fig.  127,  is  hauled 

15 


226  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

into  the  fill  B  C,  and  g  and  g'  are  the  centers  of  gravity 
of  the  cut  and  fill  respectively;  then  the  overhaul  is 
G  G' —  500  and  this  is  applied  to  the  entire  volume  B  F. 
This  method,  in  the  example  which  follows  in  \  250,  is 
not  so  favorable  to  the  contractor  as  the  first  method. 

Overhaul  is  computed  for  each  fill,  and  overhaul  in 
one  fill  is  not  counterbalanced  by  a  short  haul  in  another 
fill,  even  if  both  fills  are  in  the  same  section. 

248.  Method  of  Computing  Overhaul. — While  it  is 
not  necessary  to  determine  the  centers  of  gravity,  with 
extreme  precision,  in  general,  it  will  not  be  sufficiently 
accurate  to  take  the  centers  of  gravity  of  the  plane  figures 


FIG,  127. 

shown  in  Figs.  126  and  127  as  the  centers  of  gravity  of  the 
volumes  represented,  on  account  of  the  volumes  increas- 
ing more  rapidly  then  the  first  power  of  the  height  of 
the  cut  or  fill.  The  center  of  gravity  is  usually  com- 
puted by  the  algebraic  method,  or  by  moments. 

Only  the  total  volume  of  a  cut  or  fill  is  written  on  the 
profile,  but  in  the  cross-section  book  the  volumes  be- 
tween the  adjacent  cross-sections  are  recorded.  These 
sections  are  never  more  than  100  feet  apart,  and  are  less 
than  100  feet  apart  if  the  ground  is  rough,  so  the  total 
volume  of  a  cut  or  fill  is  divided  into  a  number  of  small 
volumes,  or  prismoids.  In  most  cases  there  will  be  no 


RAILROAD   CONSTRUCTION. 


227 


appreciable  error  in  the  final  result  if  the  center  of  grav- 
ity of  each  of  the  prismoids  is  considered  to  be  half-way 
between  its  end  sections.  In  order  to  compute  the 
center  of  gravity  of  the  cut  (or  fill),  assume  some  point 
as  B,  Fig.  127;  then  the  sum  of  the  products  of  each 
small  volume  by  the  distance  of  its  center  of  gravity 
from  B  in  feet,  divided  by  the  total  volume  B  F,  will  give 
the  distance  B  G  in  feet.  In  the  same  way  B  G'  is  com- 
puted, and  then  the  total  distance  between  the  centers 


of  gravity  is  G  G'  =  B  G  -f  B  G',  and  the  distance  of 
overhaul  is  G  G'  minus  the  free-haul. 

249.  The  Mass  Diagram. — The  amount  of  overhaul 
may  be  computed  graphically  by  means  of  the  mass 
diagram  shown  in  Fig.  128.  The  line  A  B  H  represents 
the  profile  of  the  portion  of  the  line  between  stations  30 
and  40,  F  C  the  grade  line,  and  B,  sta.  34  +  70.0,  the 
point  of  zero  cut  and  fill.  The  portion  of  the  cut  to  the 
left  of  sta.  30  is  carried  to  the  left,  and  all  the  cut  to  the 


228 


RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


right  of  sta.  30  goes  to  make  the  fill  B  C  H.  In  order  to 
construct  the  mass  diagram  a  table  similar  to  table  XIX 
is  compiled.  The  volumes  of  the  prismoids  hi  the  second 
and  third  columns  are  taken  from  the  cross-section  book ; 
the  quantities  in  the  fourth  column  are  obtained  by 
adding  the  quantities  in  the  second  and  third  columns 
algebraically,  cuts  being  considered  positive  and  fills 
negative.  The  quantities  in  the  second  and  third  col- 
umns are  also  written  on  the  profile  in  the  parts  cor- 
responding to  the  respective  prismoids,  600  being  the 
number  of  cubic  yards  between  stas.  30  and  31,  etc. 

TABLE  XIX. 


STA. 

CUT, 
Cu.  YDS. 

FILL, 
Cu.  YDS. 

ORDINATE, 
Cu.  YDS. 

30     

o 

o 

31   

600 

+   600 

32  

500 

+  1100 

33  

300 

+  1400 

34  

150 

+  1550 

34  +  70  

50 

-f  1600- 

35  

20 

+  1580 

36 

150 

+  1430 

37 

400 

+  1030 

38 

500 

+  530 

39. 

530 

0 

40  

700 

—  700 

To  construct  the  mass  diagram  L  D'  N  E'  M  draw  the 
indefinite  horizontal  line  L  M,  and  on  the  ordinate 
through  each  station  plot  the  corresponding  value  from 
the  fourth  column  of  table  XIX  to  any  convenient 
scale,  and  connect  the  upper  ends  of  the  ordinates  by 
the  line  L  D'  N  E'  M.  The  point  M  where  the  curve 
cuts  the  line  L  M  shows  the  limit  of  the  fill  that  can  be 


RAILROAD   CONSTRUCTION.  229 

made  from  the  cut.  In  the  data  assumed  in  the  above 
illustration,  the  number  of  cubic  yards  in  the  prismoids, 
the  beginning  of  the  cut,  and  the  end  of  the  fill  were 
taken  in  round  numbers,  so  that  the  method  could  be 
the  more  easily  understood.  The  shrinkage  and  swell 
were  also  ignored. 

250.  Overhaul  from  the  Mass  Diagram. — The  area 
of  each  trapezoid  in  the  mass  diagram  represents  the 
volume  of  the  corresponding  prismoid  moved  100  feet, 
therefore  the  area  of  the  mass  diagram  represents  the 
total  volume  moved  100  feet,  and  the  area  of  the  mass 
diagram  divided  by  the  total  volume  of  cut  equals  the 
total  distance  hauled,  or  the  distance  between  the  cen- 
ters of  gravity  of  the  cut  and  fill,  in  hundreds  of  feet. 
Assuming  the  volumes  of  the  prismoids  to  be  propor- 
tional to  the  areas  of  the  trapezoids,  the  total  haul  is 
found  as  follows : 

300  +  850  +  1250  +  1475  +  1102  +  477  +  1505  +  1230  +  780  +  265  _ 

~  1600" 
5.77,  or  577  feet. 

The  area  of  the  mass  diagram  can  also  be  obtained 
with  a  planimeter. 

To  compute  the  overhaul  according  to  the  first 
method  in  f  247  (Fig.  126)  in  Fig.  128,  draw  the  hori- 
zontal line  D'  E'  at  such  an  elevation  that  the  distance 
D'  E'  intercepted  between  the  points  where  the  line 
cuts  the  curve  is  equal  to  the  free-haul,  and  project  the 
points  D'  and  F/  to  D  and  E  respectively;  then  the 
points  D  and  E  show  the  limits  of  free-haul ;  the  volumes 
B  D,  BE,  and  D'  N  E'  are  equal,  and  correspond  to 


230  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

the  part  that  is  moved  free  before  any  overhaul  is  allowed ; 
the  volume  of  the  rectangle  D'  E'  E"  D"  is  also  hauled 
free,  and  the  sum  of  the  volumes  L  D"  D'  and  E'  E"  M 
is  the  volume  upon  which  overhaul  must  be  paid,  or 
2192  cubic  yards  hauled  100  feet.  The  cost  of  the 
overhaul  by  the  two  methods  at  one  cent  per  yard 
per  100  feet  is  as  follows : 

By  the  first  method 1600  X  .77  X.01  =  $12.32 

By  the  second  method 2192  X  .01  =  $21.92. 

251.  Practical  Application  of  Mass  Diagram. — In 

practice,  the  volume  upon  which  overhaul  is  allowed  is 
measured  in  the  fill  after  it  has  settled;  therefore  the 
overhaul  is  not  usually  computed  until  just  before  final 
acceptance  of  the  work.  This  in  some  cases,  however, 
is  not  possible,  as,  for  instance,  when  the  fill  is  being 
made  from  excavated  material  and  borrow  at  the  same 
time.  In  such  cases  the  quantities  are  taken  from  the 
cross-section  book,  corrected  for  shrinkage  or  swell, 
tabulated  as  in  table  XX,  and  the  overhaul  computed. 
In  this  case  earth  is  assumed  to  shrink  10  per  cent., 
loose  rock  to  remain  constant,  and  solid  rock  to  swell 
40  per  cent.,  the  corrections  being  shown  in  brackets 
in  the  second  and  fourth  columns.  The  mass  diagram 
for  th,e  quantities  in  table  XX  shows  that  the  cut  will 
make  the  fills  up  to  sta.  39  +  34.  The  limit  of  the  fill 
can  also  be  found  by  proportioning  between  the  ordi- 
nates  hi  the  seventh  column  opposite  stas.  39  and  40. 
In  this  case  the  total  cut  is  found  to  be  1836  cu.  yds., 
the  overhaul  106  feet,  and  the  cost  of  the  overhaul  at 


RAILROAD   CONSTRUCTION. 


231 


one  cent  per  yard  per  100  feet  by  the  first  method  will 

be: 

1836  X  1.06  X  .01  =  $19.46. 

The  above  shows  only  one  feature  of  the  mass  diagram. 
If  a  mass  diagram  be  constructed  for  one  or  more  sec- 
tions (miles),  a  study  can  be  made  of  the  balancing  of 
the  cuts  and  fills,  the  borrow  or  waste,  as  well  as  the 
overhaul,  and  the  advisability  of  raising  or  lowering 
the  grade,  or  shifting  the  line. 

TABLE  XX. 


STA. 

CUT  IN  Cu.  YDS. 

CORRECT'  D 
YARDAGE. 

FILLS, 
Cu.  YDS. 

ORDINATES. 

EARTH. 

LOOSE 
ROCK. 

SOLID 
ROCK. 

30  
31  ... 

0 
331 

-(33) 
176 
-(18) 
149 
-(15) 
61 
-  (6) 
50 
-  (5) 

0 
0 

50 
39 
0 
0 

0 
269 
+  (108) 
274 
+  (110) 
112 
+  (45) 
99 
+  (40) 

0 

0 
+  674 
+  592 
+  330 

+  195 

+  45 

—  20 
-150 
-400 
—  500 
-530 

-700 

0 
674 
1266 
1596 

1791 

1836 

1816 
1666 
1266 
766 
236 
0 
—  464 

32  
33  

34  

34  +  70. 
35 

36. 

37  
38  
39  
39  +  34. 
40  

252.  The  Cost  of  Excavation.— In  railroad  work  the 
contractor  is  paid  per  yard  of  excavation,  the  excavated 
material  to  be  placed  in  the  fills  by  the  contractor  free 


232  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

of  cost,  provided  there  is  no  overhaul,  therefore  if  the 
cuts  balance  the  fills,  and  there  is  no  overhaul,  the  cost 
to  the  railroad  of  building  the  subgrade  depends  upon 
the  number  of  cubic  yards  of  cut. 

The  work  of  the  contractor  in  making  the  excavations, 
and  the  items  which  he  must  consider  in  making  his 
bids,  are  seven,  viz.,  loosening,  loading,  hauling,  spread- 
ing, repairs,  and  interest  on  cost  of  plant,  superinten- 
dence and  incidentals,  and  profit;  and  in  many  cases 
there  is  another  item,  viz.,  keeping  the  roadways  in 
repair. 

253.  Loosening. — Loosening  the  material  in  a  cut 
depends  upon  the  nature  of  the  material  and  the  method 
of  working.  In  a  long  shallow  cut  of  earth,  sand,  or 
gravel,  the  best  method  of  loosening  is  by  means  of 
plows,  two-  or  four-horse  plows  being  used,  and  if  the 
haul  is  not  too  great,  drag-  or  wheel-scrapers  can  be 
used  economically.  As  a  wheel-scraper  holds  about  ^ 
cubic  yard  and  requires  two  horses,  it  is  not  economical 
to  have  the  team  travel  too  far  empty. 

When  the  soil  is  of  a  clay  nature,  it  is  sometimes 
difficult  to  plow,  and  picks  must  be  used.  It  is  consider- 
ably more  expensive  to  loosen  material  with  picks 
than  with  plows.  When  picks  are  used,  as  far  as  possible, 
the  material  is  removed  in  layers  several  feet  thick, 
which  enables  the  men  with  the  pick  to  undermine  a 
more  or  less  vertical  face  and  then  to  bring  down  a 
considerable  quantity  at  one  time. 

Powder  is  often  used  to  advantage  to  loosen  up 
material  in  order  to  facilitate  the  work  with  picks, 
particularly  in  some  kinds  of  clay,  shales,  and  frozen 


RAILROAD   CONSTRUCTION.  233 

earth.  There  is  so  much  variation  in  materials  that 
go  by  the  same  name  that  no  certain  method  can  be 
stated  for  loosening  a  material.  The  experience  and 
ability  of  a  contractor  and  his  foremen  to  use  the  most 
economical  method  govern  the  cost  of  all  excavation 
work.  Some  idea  of  this  may  be  obtained  from  the 
statement  that  it  is  sometimes  economical  to  blast  and 
pick  some  forms  of  earth  and  to  plow  some  forms  of 
shale. 

The  above  statements  apply  to  everything  but  solid 
rock,  which  must  always  be  blasted  in  order  to  loosen  it. 
This  will  be  considered  separately. 

It  costs  from  J  to  2  cents  per  cubic  yard  to  loosen 
earth  by  plowing,  and  from  1J  to  7  cents  per  cubic  yard 
to  loosen  earth  with  picks. 

254.  Blasting. — It  is  necessary  to  loosen  all  solid 
rock  by  blasting.  In  blasting  the  loosening  is  produced 
by  the  sudden  expansion  of  a  gas  which  is  developed  by 
the  explosion  of  the  blasting  compound.  Blasting  com- 
pounds may  be  divided  into  two  general  classes,  viz., 
slow-burning  and  detonating,  the  most  common  forms 
in  general  use  for  blasting  purposes  being  gunpowder 
and  dynamite  respectively.  Gunpowder  is  a  slow-burn- 
ing explosive  which  is  ignited  by  heat,  generally  a  fuse  or 
a  wire  connected  with  an  electric  battery;  each  grain 
ignites  the  adjacent  grains,  and  the  heat  and  pressure  are 
comparatively  low.  Dynamite  is  composed  of  nitro- 
glycerin  and  infusorial  earth;  if  mixed  in  the  proper 
proportions,  it  is  nearly  or  quite  as  powerful,  cheaper, 
and  safer  to  handle  than  pure  nitroglycerin.  Dyna- 
mite is  exploded  by  a  shock  which  explodes  the  whole 


234  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

mass  instantly,  usually  by  means  of  a  fulminating  cap 
which  is  fired  by  means  of  a  wire  and  an  electric  battery. 
Many  other  explosives  are  used,  but  these  illustrate  the 
general  idea. 

There  is  great  economy  in  using  the  proper  explosive 
with  a  certain  kind  of  rock.  The  tendency  of  the  slow- 
burning  compounds  is  to  loosen  without  shattering, 
while  dynamite  tends  to  shatter,  and  in  many  cases  the 
loosening  effect  is  not  far-reaching.  In  general  a  hard 
brittle  rock  is  most  effectively  blasted  by  dynamite, 
provided  the  only  object  is  to  loosen  the  rock;  if  the 
rock  is  to  be  used  for  building  purposes,  dynamite  will 
probably  shatter  it  too  much.  A  softer,  tougher  rock 
will  give  better  results  when  powder  is  used.  It  takes 
considerable  experience  and  judgment  to  determine  the 
amount  and  kind  of  explosive  to  be  used,  powder  being 
mostly  used  in  open  cuts  and  dynamite  in  tunnels. 

255.  Drilling. — In  order  to  be  effective  powder 
and  dynamite  must  be  rammed  in  holes  drilled  in. the 
rock.  Drilling  is  one  of  the  most  expensive  operations 
in  connection  with  rock  excavation.  When  there  is 
sufficient  drilling  to  be  done  in  a  comparatively  small 
area,  such  as  a  tunnel,  where  is  it  economical  to  install 
an  air  compressor,  machine  rock-drills  are  used;  but  in 
small  cuts  strung  out  along  a  considerable  length  of  line 
drilling  must  be  done  by  hand. 

Drills  for  hand -drilling  consist  of  bars  of  steel  of  various 
lengths  sharpened  as  shown  in  Fig.  129.  They  are 
usually  about  1J  inches  in  diameter  and  are  sharpened 
and  tempered  according  to  the  nature  of  the  rock  being 
drilled ;  the  harder  the  rock,  the  blunter  the  point  of  the 


RAILROAD   CONSTRUCTION.  235 

drill.  The  cutting-edge  is  wider  than  the  main  body  of 
the  drill  by  from  15  to  30  per  cent.,  and  is  sharpened  by 
grinding  after  a  short  distance — 6  to  18  inches  of  hole — 
has  been  drilled;  and  after  the  whole  point  of  the  drill 
has  become  too  blunt,  it  is  repointed  by  the  blacksmith, 
this  being  necessary  every  two  or  three  days.  Hand- 
drills  are  from  1  to  4  feet  long  or  even  longer.  A  churn- 
drill  is  a  bar  of  wrought-iron  shod  with  steel  or  a  bar  of 
steel;  it  is  pointed  like  a  hand-drill  and  ranges  from 
6  to  20  feet  in  length,  and  in  some  cases  even  longer. 

The  method  of  drilling  a  hole  depends  upon  the  depth 
of  the  hole.     If  the  hole  is  to  be  only  a  foot  or  two  deep, 
it  will  probably  be  drilled  by  one  man. 
If  it  is  to  be  6  or  8  feet  deep,  it  will  prob- 
ably be  started  for  a  few  inches  by  one 
man,  and  then  one  man  will  hold  the  drill 
while  one,  two,  or  three  men  strike  it  with 
hammers,  drills  of  suitable  lengths  being         FIG.  129. 
used  as  the  hole  becomes  deeper.     If  the 
hole  is   to  be  very  deep,  a  churn-drill  will  be  used  as 
soon  as  the  hole  is  deep  enough  to  guide  the  drill  and 
keep  it  going  true.     In  churn-drilling  two  or  more  men 
raise  the  drill  a  few  inches  and  allow  it  to  drop,  giving 
it  a  partial  turn  each  time,  the  work  being  done  by  the 
weight  of  the  drill.     Holes  may  be  drilled  20  or  more 
feet  by  means  of  churn-drills. 

256.  Loading  and  Firing.— On  account  of  the  great 
expense  of  drilling  a  hole,  great  care  is  taken  in  charging, 
tamping,  and  firing.  When  the  blasting  is  to  be  done 
by  dynamite,  the  required  amount  is  placed  in  the  drill 
hole.  It  is  not  absolutely  necessary  to  tamp  dynamite, 


236  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

but  it  will  be  more  effective  if  it  is  tamped.  A  fulmi- 
nating cap  attached  to  a  wire  is  placed  in  contact  with 
the  dynamite,  and  then  clay  or  sand  is  carefully  rammed 
around  the  wire  and  against  the  dynamite  with  a  wooden 
rammer;  after  this  is  done  and  proper  warning  given, 
the  charge  is  fired  by  means  of  an  electric  battery. 

The  effect  of  the  explosion  of  powder  depends  to  a 
great  extent  upon  the  amount  of  ramming;  the  more 
thorough  the  ramming,  the  greater  the  effect.  In  many 
cases,  in  order  to  increase  the  amount  of  powder  that  can 
be  used  and  also  the  effect  of  the  explosion,  the  hole  is 
first  sprung.  Springing  the  hole  consists 
in  exploding  a  small  quantity  of  dyna- 
mite in  the  bottom  of  the  hole,  which 
has  the  effect  of  forming  a  small  cham- 
ber at  the  bottom  of  the  hole,  as  shown 
in  Fig.  130,  and  also  shatters  the  sur- 
FIG.  130.  rounding  rock  to  a  certain  extent.  The 
extra  space  at  the  bottom  of  the  hole 
allows  more  powder  to  be  used,  and  the  shattering  of  the 
rock  causes  the  work  of  the  powder  to  be  more  effective. 
After  the  powder  is  placed  in  the  hole  a  fuse  is  run  from 
the  powder  to  the  surface  of  the  ground.  The  hole  is 
then  tamped  with  clay  or  sand,  care  being  taken  not  to 
injure  the  fuse,  which  consists  of  a  cord  through  which 
runs  a  thin  vein  of  gunpowder,  the  cord  being  protected 
by  coverings  to  protect  it  from  dampness  and  injury. 

Gunpowder  should  never  be  tamped  with  an  iron  bar, 
a  wooden  bar  being  generally  used,  although  copper  bars 
are  used. 

Blasting  for  excavation  may  cost  from  30  to  60  cents 


RAILROAD   CONSTRUCTION.  237 

per  cubic  yard,  depending  upon  the  nature  of  the  rock 
and  the  depth  of  the  cutting,  a  shallow  cut  being  quite 
expensive. 

257.  Loading,  Hauling,  and  Spreading. — In  If  252 
the  second,  third,  and  fourth  items  of  the  expense  of 
excavation  were  loading,  hauling,  and  spreading,  the 
three  items  being  so  closely  related  that  they  might  well 
be  considered  one — moving  the  loosened  material.  Leav- 
ing scrapers  and  steam-shovels  out  of  the  question, 
the  excavated  material  must  be  loaded  into  the  wheel- 
barrow, cart,  wagon,  or  car;  must  be  hauled  to  the  fill, 
emptied,  and,  sometimes,  roughly  leveled  up.  The  cost  of 
loading  is  the  same  per  cubic  yard  for  the  same  material, 
it  making  no  difference  whether  it  is  shoveled  into  a  cart 
or  wagon,  and  very  little  difference  between  a  wheel- 
barrow and  a  cart.  There  is  considerable  difference 
between  the  time  it  takes  to  unload  a  wagon,  a  cart,  or  a 
wheelbarrow,  unless  patent  dumping  wagons  are  used; 
but  the  main  items  that  vary  are  the  distance  of  haul 
and  the  amount  hauled.  A  wheelbarrow  will  hold  about 
J  of  a  cubic  yard,  a  cart  about  J,  and  an  ordinary  wagon 
about  1  cubic  yard.  The  exact  limits  of  distance  that 
will  be  economical  for  each  will  depend  upon  other  con- 
ditions than  the  above,  and  are  difficult  to  state,  but 
the  economical  limit  for  wheelbarrows  may  be  placed 
at  100  feet,  carts  from  100  feet  to  500  feet,  and  wagons 
for  distances  over  500  feet,  this  being  governed  to  a 
great  extent  by  the  distance  a  driver  and  team  must 
travel  in  returning.  A  man,  horse,  and  cart  carry  J 
cubic  yard;  and  a  man,  two  horses,  and  a  wagon  carry 
at  least  1  cubic  yard,  but  take  longer  in  dumping  the  load. 


238  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

258.  Method   of  Working. — When   cuts   are   earth 
and  shallow  and  the  fills  not  too  long,  excavation  and 
fill  are  most  economically  made  by  means  of  plows  and 
wheel-scrapers;   but  if  the  material  can  be  handled  by 
steam-shovels  and  the  cuts  are  large  enough,  steam- 
shovels  and  wagons  or  cars  would  be  used. 

If  the  cut  is  rock  with  a  thin  covering  of  earth,  the 
method  of  working  will  be  about  as  follows :  A  few  men 
will  excavate  the  part  Ba,  Fig.  131,  with  picks  and  throw 
it  into  the  fill  B  6  with  shovels,  until  the  distance  is 
too  great  for  shoveling — probably  12  to  15  feet.  Then  the 
material  will  be  moved  by  wheelbarrows  until  the  dis- 
tance is  great  enough  to 
make  horse-carts  economi- 
cal ;  and  if  the  haul  becomes 
very  long,  two-horse  wagons 
v  are  economical,  or  even  a 

rIG.    loi. 

small  track  and  dump-cars. 

As  soon  as  the  loose  or   earthy  material  has  been-  re- 
moved, the  drilling  and  blasting  begin. 

259.  Profits  of  Contractor. — Contracting  is  a  gam- 
ble.    Despite  experience  and  careful  estimates,  a  con- 
tractor cannot  count  on  his  profits  until  the  work  is 
finally  accepted  and  he  is  paid  the  full  amount.     It  has 
frequently  happened  that  with  two  contractors  working 
on  the  same  class  of  work  under  about  the  same  conditions 
one  will  make  money  and  the  other  will  lose;    this  is 
particularly  the  case  in  rock  excavation.     The  contractor 
or  his  representative  goes  carefully  over  the  work,  esti- 
mates the  probable  cost  of  doing  the  work,  adds  as 
large  a  percentage  for  contingencies  and  profits  as  he 


RAILROAD   CONSTRUCTION.  239 

possibly  can  and  still  underbid  the  other  contractors. 
If  the  contractor  has  been  on  similar  work  and  owns 
the  necessary  outfit,  he  can  underbid  the  contractor 
who  must  buy  a  large  portion  of  his  outfit.  He  must 
pay  his  men  and  interest  on  his  plant  and  make  repairs, 
and  should  have  a  fair  profit  clear  of  all  expenses — pos- 
sibly 10  per  cent.  New  machinery  that  is  bought  for  the 
work  cannot  all  be  charged  against  the  one  piece  of 
work,  but  part  of  the  cost  must  come  out  of  the  profits. 

There  is  great  economy  in  properly  handling  the  men. 
If  the  contractor  furnishes  quarters  and  board  to  the  men, 
it  is  not  only  a  source  of  profit,  but  he  has  the  men  under 
better  control.  Instances  have  occurred  where  a  profit- 
able commissary  counterbalanced  a  loss  on  the  work. 

260.  Force  Account. — Where  the  railroad  wishes 
to  have  absolute  control  of  the  work,  or  where  there  are 
so  many  uncertainties  in  connection  with  work  that  con- 
tractors are  afraid  to  bid,  the  work  is  often  let  by  force- 
account  work.  In  this  method  the  contractor  furnishes 
all  men,  machinery,  materials  and  repairs,  and  is  paid 
a  percentage  on  the  total  cost,  usually  10  per  cent.  If 
there  are  a  great  many  uncertainties  about  a  piece  of 
work,  a  contractor  cannot  afford  to  bid  a  fixed  price 
without  adding  a  percentage  for  contingencies  that  will 
make  him  safe  against  all  probable  delays  and  losses; 
this  makes  the  cost  too  high  for  the  railroad,  and  under 
these  circumstances  the  force-account  method  is  the 
fairest ;  the  contractor  makes  a  fair  profit  and  the  rail- 
road pays  the  exact  cost. 


CHAPTER  VII. 
TRESTLES. 


ARTICLE  XXI. 
FRAMED  TRESTLES. 

261.  Permanent  Trestles. — Trestles  may  be  divided 
into  two  general  classes,  viz.,  permanent  and  temporary 
trestles.  Permanent  trestles  may  be  built  over  large 
ravines  or  valleys,  over  a  long  stretch  of  marshy  country, 
or  broad  stretches  of  shallow  water.  The  ideal  subgrade 
should  have  all  fills  made  solid  except  where  openings 
are  absolutely  necessary,  in  which  case  masonry  should 
be  used.  Masonry  approaches  the  nearest  to  solid  fill. 
In  such  a  roadbed  there  would  be  no  necessity  to  rebuild 
bridges  for  heavier  locomotives  and  no  danger  that  rust 
is  causing  trouble  in  some  hidden  part.  The  nature  of 
the  roadbed  is  governed  by  the  cost ;  in  some  cases  it  is 
absolutely  necessary  to  bridge  the  opening,  and  in  other 
cases  it  is  economy  to  use  trestles  of  as  permanent  a 
construction  as  possible.  Permanent  trestles  are  usually 
built  of  steel  and  are  called  viaducts.  A  steel  viaduct 
is  built  over  a  long  stretch  of  low  country  of  such  nature 
that  good  foundations  for  the  posts  are  obtainable,  and 
where  the  difference  between  the  elevation  of  the  ground 

240 


TRESTLES.  241 

and  the  track  is  too  great  to  make  a  fill  economical,  and 
where  the  stream  is  not  large-  enough  to  interfere  with 
the  foundations.  They  are  also  built  over  deep  nar- 
row gorges,  such  as  the  Kinzua  Viaduct,  on  the  Oroya 
R.  R.,  in  Peru.  Many  items  must  be  considered  in 
order  to  determine  the  most  economical  method  of 
bridging  an  opening,  and  a  general  rule  is  an  impossi- 
bility. 

262.  Temporary  Trestles. — Temporary  trestles  may 
be  built  in  the  following  cases:  (1)  to  replace  a  structure 
temporarily  so  that  traffic  will  not  be  delayed;  (2)  to 
run  around  a  structure  while  it  is  being  rebuilt;  (3)  to 
save  fill  temporarily  on  account  of  the  excessive  cost 
of  borrow;  and  (4)  to  give  time  to  study  the  area  of 
waterway  required.  The  first  two  cases  are  self-ex- 
planatory. It  frequently  happens  that  it  is  difficult 
or  very  expensive  to  get  the  borrow  with  which  to  com- 
plete the  fill,  and  it  is  found  much  more  economical,  both 
in  cost  and  in  time  saved  in  opening  the  road  to  traffic, 
to  put  in  a  temporary  trestle.  Temporary  trestles  are 
built  of  wood  and  will  last  ten  years  on  an  average. 
After  the  road  is  in  operation  and  long  before  the  trestle 
will  need  repair,  it  will  be  possible  to  haul  the  necessary 
material  in  trains  and  replace  the  trestle  with  embank- 
ment. This  will  be  more  expensive  than  earth  borrow, 
but  much  cheaper  than  solid  rock  borrow. 

In  country  undeveloped  by  railroads  it  is  frequently 
found  difficult  to  approximate  closely  the  area  of  water- 
way required  by  a  stream.  It  is  as  poor  engineering  to 
build  an  opening  too  large  as  it  is  to  build  it  too  small  ; 
consequently  if,  as  is  often  the  case,  it  is  about  as  eco- 
16 


242 


RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


noinical  to  put  in  a  temporary  trestle,  this  fact,  coupled 
with  the  doubtful  area  of  waterway  required,  will  make 
it  best  to  put  in  the  trestle  and  then  find  the  necessary 
data  and  construct  the  permanent  opening  before  it  is 
necessary  to  repair  the  trestle. 

263.  Framed  Trestle  Bents. — Trestle  bents  are  of 
two  general  types,  viz.,  frame  and  pile.  Framed  trestle 
bents  are  built  of  squared  timbers,  usually  all  being  the 
same  size,  12  by  12  inches. 


FIG.  132. 

In  Fig.  132  is  shown  the  elevation  of  the  simplest 
form  of  framed  bent — the  timber  A  is  the  cap,  B  the  posts, 
C  the  batter  posts,  and  D  the  sill.  These  members  are 
framed  together  in  five  different  ways,  viz.,  mortise  and 
tenon,  dowels,  drift-bolts,  plaster-joints,  and  iron-plate 
joints. 

264.  Mortise  and  Tenon  Joint.— The  mortise  and 
tenon  joint  is,  everything  considered,  the  best  form  of 
joint,  the  principal  objections  to  it  being  that  it  lessens 


TRESTLES. 


243 


O 


FIG.  133. 


the  vertical  bearing  strength  of  the  cap  and  sill  and  is 
expensive  to  make.  The  hole  is  bored  through  the 
mortise  and  tenon  separ- 
ately in  such  a  way  that 
when  the  wooden  pin  is 
driven  through  the  finished 
joint,  the  tenon  is  drawn 
firmly  into  the  mortise.  In 
Fig.  133  in  a  and  b  are 
shown  two  views  of  the  mortise,  and  in  c  and  d  are 
shown  two  views  of  the  tenon. 

265.  Dowel  and  Drift-bolt  Joints.— 
^       ,  .      "(      A  dowel  is  an  iron  pin  driven  an  equal 

U  distance  into  each  of  the  members  compos- 

ing the  joint.     In  a  trestle  joint  the  dowels 
[~]  are  usually  a  piece  of  square  or  round 

FIG.  134.  f-inch  iron  about  8  inches  long,  driven 
into  holes  bored  to  receive  them.  Two 
dowels  should  be  used,  as  shown  in  Fig.  134.  If  only 
one  dowel  is  used,  the  upright  timber  is  free  to  turn, 
but  two  dowels  prevent  it  from 
turning  and  also  give  greater 
security  against  slipping  out  of 
position  laterally.  Dowels  would 
be  of  little  value  to  hold  mem- 
bers if  they  were  not  in  a  verti-  D  °  [5]  (o)  [g] 
cal  or  nearly  vertical  position,  FIG.  135. 

as  they  are  in  the  trestle  bents, 
batter  posts  never  being  far  from  a  vertical  position. 

Drift-bolts  vary  from  a  piece  of  -round  or  square  iron 
cut  in  the  right  lengths  without  either  head  or  point 


244 


RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


to  a  piece  of  the  same  iron  with  a  head  on  one  end  and 
a  point  on  the  other,  Fig.  135.  The  heads  are  round, 
square,  or  countersunk.  The  points  are  usually  blunt, 
being  from  one-half  to  one  and  one-half  inches  in  length, 
and  may  be  either  wedge,  pyramid,  or  conical-shaped; 
the  points  should  be  in  all  cases  symmetrical.  Drift- 
bolts  vary  in  length  according  to  the  size  of  the  pieces 
to  be  bolted  together.  In  the  case  of  12-  by  12-inch 
timber,  the  drift-bolts  would  be  about  20  inches  long. 
Drift-bolts  are  'usually  either  f-inch  square  or  f-inch 
round  iron,  and  are  driven 
into  a  hole  bored  f  inch  in  di- 
ameter. 

266.  Plaster  Joint.— The  plas- 
ter joint  is  made  by  spiking  and 
bolting  two  pieces  of  3-inch  plank 
3  feet  long  and  as  wide  as  the 
main  members  of  the  joint,  as 
shown  in  Fig.  136. 

The  post  is  notched  into  the  cap  and  sill  about  1  inch, 
as  shown  at  a  b  in  the  figure,  in  order  to  prevent  motion 
parallel  to  the  surface  of  the  splices.  The  plaster  joint 
is  quite  convenient  to  use  in  making  repairs,  as  it  can  be 
made  with  the  timbers  erected.  The  joint  in  Fig.  136 
is  formed  of  two  pieces  of  plank  3  by  12  inches  and  3 
feet  long;  these  are  fastened  on  each  side  of  the  main 
members  by  the  bolts  B  and  large  spikes  c,  the  spikes 
being  of  the  same  general  pattern  as  ordinary  nails, 
and  6  inches  long. 

267.  Iron  Plate  Joint. — The  front  and  side  views 
of  an  iron  plate  joint  are  shown  in  a  and  6,  Fig.  137, 


TRESTLES. 


245 


and  an  isometric  drawing  of  the  joint  is  shown  in  the 
same  figure  at  c.  The  joint  may  be  made  from  a  wrought- 
iron  or  steel  plate  about  |  inch  thick.  The  members 
are  bolted  together  through  the  holes  shown,  two  bolts 
passing  through  each  member.  This  joint  is  easy  to  put 
together;  members  may  be  replaced  easily,  but  it  is 
expensive. 

A  joint  should  hold  the  parts  firmly  in  place,  give  firm 
uniform  bearing,  should  allow  members  to  be  replaced 
without  too  much  trouble,  and  should  be  cheap.  As 
stated  above,  the  mortise  and  tenon  joint  is  probably 
the  best  joint,  everything  considered,  for  the  trestle  bent, 


0               0 

4 

0                 0 

6 
FIG.  137. 

and  the  plaster  joint  is  very  convenient  in  repairing. 
The  iron  plate  joint  gives  the  best  bearing  for  abutting 
members,  holds  the  members  together  firmly  when  well 
bolted,  allows  parts  to  be  replaced  readily,  and  probably 
makes  as  good  a  joint  as  the  mortise  and  tenon,  the  main 
advantage  of  the  mortise  and  tenon  joint  being  that  it 
can  be  made  in  the  field  from  the  timber,  while  any  parts 
that  are  ordered  from  a  factory  are  liable  to  cause  delay. 
268.  Dimensions  of  Trestle  Bents. — The  main 
points  of  trestle  bents  that  are  standardized  by  railroads 
are  the  dimensions  of  the  members,  the  kind  of  joints, 
the  length  of  the  cap,  the  distance  between  centers  of 


246  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

vertical  posts,  the  projection  a  b,  Fig.  132,  of  the  sill,  and 
the  slope  of  the  batter  posts.  An  examination  of  the 
standard  plans  of  fifteen  railroads*  shows  a  surprising 
variation  in  some  dimensions  that  are  susceptible  of 
almost  exact  theoretical  design.  The  standard  plans 
mentioned  above  show  the  distance  between  the  centers 
of  the  vertical  posts  to  range  from  3  feet  0  inches  to 
6  feet  6  inches  for  single-track  bents,  the  usual  distance 
being  5  feet.  The  distance  between  the  centers  of  heads 
or  bases  of  rails  may  be  taken  as  5  feet.  If  it  is  assumed 
that  the  vertical  posts  are  to  carry  the  entire  load, 
then  they  should  be  placed  5  feet  apart  between  centers; 
this  assumption  throws  only  lateral  thrust  into  the  batter 
posts.  If  the  vertical  posts  are  placed  4  feet  between 
centers,  and  the  batter  posts  are  arranged  as  shown  in 
Fig.  132,  the  load  will  be  distributed  equally  on  the  vertical 
and  batter  posts,  the  principal  advantage  of  this  ar- 
rangement being  that  a  greater  bearing  surface  under  the 
load  is  presented  to  the  cap. 

269.  The  Cap  and  Sill. — The  length  of  the  cap  in  the 
fifteen  cases  ranged  from  10  feet  to  16  feet;  10  feet  is 
ample  for  the  arrangement  shown  in  Fig.  132.  Timber 
will  crush  more  easily  when  the  load  is  applied  at  right 
angles  to  the  grain,  than  it  will  when  the  load  is  applied 
in  the  direction  of  the  grain,  therefore  the  cap  and  sill 
have  a  tendency  to  crush  where  the  ends  of  the  posts 
press  against  them.  For  this  reason  it  has  been  the 
custom  to  make  the  cap  and  sill  12  by  12  inches,  and  some- 
times of  hard  wood,  the  difference  between  the  compressive 
strength  of  wood  parallel  to  the  grain  and  at  right  angles 
*  Wooden  Trestle  Bridges,  Foster. 


TRESTLES.  247 

to  the  grain  being  so  great  that  a  soft-wood  post  is  as 
strong  as  a  hard- wood  cap  and  sill.  The  length  of  the 
sill  depends  upon  the  height  of  the  trestle  bent,  being 
equal  to  the  distance  between  vertical  posts  plus  2  feet 
on  each  end  projecting  beyond  the  outer  edge  of  the 
batter  post  plus  the  distance  b  c,  Fig.  132,  governed  by 
the  height  of  the  bent. 

270.  Posts. — The  posts  are  also  made  12  by  12  inches. 
The  vertical  posts  are  placed  as  described  in  ]f  263  and 
Fig.  132.  The  function  of  the  batter  posts  is  to  carry  part 
of  the  load,  to  stiffen  the  bent,  and  to  prevent  deformation 
by  lateral  thrust,  which  may  be  caused  by  the  lateral 
vibration  of  locomotive  and  train  and  by  wind  blowing 
on  both  train  and  trestle.  In  many  of  the  designs  there 
is  a  space  between  the  outer  edge  of  the  vertical  post  and 
the  inner  edge  of  the  batter  post  under  the  cap;  in  one 
case  the  distance  .between  the  centers  of  the  tops  of  the 
batter  posts  being  11  feet.  A  triangle  is  the  only  stable 
figure  in  framework;  consequently  when  there  are  no 
diagonal  braces  in  the  trestle  bent,  the  tops  of  the  batter 
posts  should  touch  the  vertical  posts,  as  shown  in  Fig. 
132,  making  the  distance  between  centers  6  feet.  The 
batter  varied  from  2  to  4  inches  per  foot,  3  inches  per 
foot  being  the  average  and  also  the  amount  used  in  most 
cases. 

While  it  is  undoubtedly  a  waste  of  lumber  in  many 
cases,  all  main  timbers  in  a  trestle  bent  are  usually  made 
12  by  12  inches  in  cross-section.  The  necessary  size  of 
timbers  varies  with  the  load,  the  height  of  the  bent,  and 
the  kind  of  timber.  A  correct  theoretical  design  would 
require  a  great  variety  of  sizes  of  cross-sections,  and  the 


248 


RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


FIG.  138. 


trouble  and  cost  of  furnishing  the  odd  sizes  would  in  many 
cases  more  than  counterbalance  the  material  saved ;  con- 
sequently it  is  the  almost  universal  custom  to  specify 
the  same  size  for  all  the  main  members  of  a  bent. 
271.  Height  of  Trestle  Bents.— The  height  of  a 
trestle  is  the  distance  from  the  base 
of  rail  to  the  bottom  of  the  sill.  The 
height  of  the  bent  is  the  height  of  the 
trestle  less  the  distance  from  the  base 
of  rail  to  the  top  of  the  cap ;  the  latter 
distance  being  the  thickness  of  the 
tie,  the  depth  of  the  stringer,  and  the 
thickness  of  the  corbel.  The  height 
of  the  trestle  is  determined  from  the 
profile,  and  then  the  height  of  the  bent  is  computed. 
The  trestle  bent  shown  in  Fig.  132  can  be  used  for  all 
heights  of  trestle  not  greater  than  24  feet.  Some  rail- 
roads require  the  diagonal  sway  bracing  shown  in  Fig. 
132  for  this  height,  but  some  do  not.  When  the  trestle 
is  more  than  about  24  feet  high,  it  is  necessary  to  build 
the  trestle  in  stories;  this  is 
done  hi  several  ways,  one 
of  which  is  shown  in  Fig. 
138,  which  represents  a  two- 
storied  bent  in  which  all  the 
members  are  12  by  12  inches 

except  the  sway  braces  ad,  be,  cf,  and  de,  which  are  2J 
by  10  inches  in  section.  The  diagonal  braces  are  called 
sway  braces;  those  shown  in  Fig.  138  are  called  lateral 
sway  braces,  and  those  in  Fig.  139  are  called  longitudinal 
sway  braces. 


XXX 


xxxxx 


\xxx/ 


FIG.  139. 


XX 


Y 


TRESTLES.  249 

The  height  of  the  stories  is  governed  by  the  length 
of  timbers  that  can  be  conveniently  obtained,  it  being 
necessary  in  some  cases  to  splice  the  sway  bracing  even 
when  the  longest  planks  are  used.  Ordinary  lumber  and 
timber  is  kept  in  stock  in  lengths  of  14  and  16  feet,  and 
sometimes  12  and  18  feet  also.  Any  length  over  18  feet 
must  be  sawed  by  special  order,  may  cost  more  per 
thousand  B.  M.,  and  is  liable  to  cause  delay.  The 
stories  of  the  bents  of  high  trestles  may  be  of  different 
heights  in  the  same  trestle,  and  are  arranged  and  braced 
as  shown  in  Fig.  139,  but  all  the  stories  at  the  same 
elevation  are  the  same  height,  the  odd  dimensions  being 
near  the  ground. 

Timber  trestles  similar  to  that  in  Fig.  139  are  more 
likely  to  be  built  in  a  section  of  the  country  where  timber 
is  plentiful. 

272.  Foundations  for  Framed  Trestles. — The  sill 
of  a  framed  bent  may  rest  on  masonry,  mud-blocks,  or 
piles.     For  high   trestles  the  foundations  are  usually 
masonry  or  piles;   for  trestles  of  ordinary  heights  the 
foundations  may  be  any  one  of  the  three  forms  mentioned 
above,  but  usually  consist  of  mud-blocks,  or  mud-sills 
and  mud-blocks.     The  most  economical  foundation  for 
a  trestle  depends  upon  (1)  the  nature  of  the  ground,  and 
(2)  the  price  of  materials. 

273.  Masonry  Foundations. — The  plan  and  elevation 
of  a  masonry  foundation  for  a  trestle  bent  is  shown  in 
Fig.  140.  CD  is  the  sill,  and  A  B  the  ground  surface. 
The  length  d  e  of  the  masonry  depends  upon  the  length 
of  the  sill  and  the  projections  a  6;  the  width  c  d  and  the 
depth  depend  upon  the  nature  of  the  soil.     In  a  very 


250  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

firm  soil  giving  good  supporting  ability,  a  horizontal  pro- 
jection of  6  inches  on  the  sides  and  ends  of  the  sill  and  a 
depth  just  below  the  frost  line  are  sufficient;  this  would 
require  the  foundation  to  be  12  inches  longer  and  wider 
than  the  sill,  and  about  2J  feet  deep.  If  the  bearing 
strength  of  the  soil  is  poorer,  the  area  of  the  base  and  the 
depth  of  the  masonry  must  be  greater.  With  timber 
at  $30  per  M.  B.  M.,  and  masonry  or  concrete  at  $6.00 
per  cubic  yard,  a  masonry  foundation  in  soil  of  good  bear- 
ing strength  will  cost  about  one-half  as  much  as  a  timber 
foundation  of  mud-sills  and  mud-blocks. 


FIG.  140. 

274.  Pile  Foundations. — When  the  soil  is  too  -soft 
and  too  deep  for  masonry  foundations,  unsuitable  for 
mud-block  and  mud-sill  foundations,  and  it  is  not  desired 
to  build  a  pile  trestle,  which  would  usually  be  built  under 
the  above  conditions,  piles  are  driven  to  support  the 
sill.  The  number  of  piles  to  each  bent  depends  upon  the 
bearing  strength  of  the  piles,  depending  upon  the  material 
through  which  they  pass  and  upon  the  material  upon 
which  their  points  rest.  The  piles  are  sawed  off  square 
and  at  the  same  level,  and  the  sill  rests  directly  upon  them. 
The  spacing  of  the  piles  depends  upon  circumstances, 
and  the  distances  between  them  may  vary  on  the  same 
principle  shown  by  the  mud -blocks  in  Fig.  141. 


TRESTLES. 


251 


275.  Mud-blocks. — In  soil  such  as  is  likely  to  be 
found  in  valleys  the  foundation  for  framed  trestle  bents 
is  usually  formed  of  mud-blocks  and  mud-sills.  In  the 
firmer  soils,  where  the  bearing  strength  is  sufficient,  the 
mud-sills  are  often  omitted.  In  Fig.  141  is  shown  one 
of  the  best  arrangements  of  blocks  and  sills,  all  being 


nn   n  VA 


CL 


mm  HIT  i  in  i 


*L 


J* 


a 

oof 


FIG.  141. 

12  by  12-inch  timbers.  The  mud-sills  b  b  are  first  laid 
in  true  surface  at  the  proper  elevation  and  3  feet  apart, 
center  to  center;  across  the  mud-sills  the  mud-blocks 
a  a  are  laid  and  spaced  as  shown,  the  mud-blocks  being 
6  feet  long,  and  then  the  bent  is  placed  centrally  upon 
the  blocks,  the  sill  C  D  being  placed  as  shown  hi  the 
'figure. 


252  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

ARTICLE  XXII. 
PILE  TRESTLE  BENTS. 

276.  Economy  of  Pile  Trestles. — Pile  trestles  are 
limited  by  the  length  of  the  piles  and  are  seldom  over  30 
feet  from  the  base  of  rail  to  the  ground  or  water  surface,  and 
are  usually  considerably  less  than  30  feet  high.     Under 
proper  conditions,  such  as  through  a  swamp  or  marshy 
ground,  or  over  a  broad  shallow  stretch  of  water,  .pile 
trestles  are  the  cheapest  and  best  form  of  temporary 
work.     There  are  over  2500  miles  of  single- track  rail- 
road trestle  in  the  United  States  alone,   the  longest 
stretch    being    across  Lake    Pontchartrain,    near    New 
Orleans,  22  miles  long. 

The  greater  the  number  of  piles  to  be  driven,  the  cheaper 
the  rate  per  foot  of  pile  at  which  they  can  be  driven ;  it  is, 
therefore,  expensive  to  build  short  stretches  of  pile  trestles 
at  considerable  distances  apart.  The  great  objection  to 
pile  trestles  is  the  rapid  decaying  of  the  wood  in  dry  earth 
and  at  the  surface  of  the  water,  and  the  great  difficulty 
of  renewal. 

277.  Bents  with  Piles  Vertical. — Single-track  pile 
trestles  have  four  piles  in  a  bent.    The  center    piles 
are  always  vertical,  but  the  end  piles  may  be  vertical 
or  with  a  batter,  as  shown  in  Fig.  142.     The  arrangement 
with  vertical  posts  is  used  for  low  trestles;  the  cap  is 
usually  about  12  feet  long,  and  there  is  considerable 
variation  in  the  spacing  of  the  piles,  one  extreme  being 
to  space  the  piles  at  equal  distances  of  3  feet  8  inches 


TRESTLES. 


253 


between  centers,  and  in  the  other  extreme  the  middle 
space  is  5  feet  and  the  two  outer  spaces  each  3  feet  be- 
tween centers. 

278.  Bents  with  Outer  Piles  Inclined. — In  Fig. 
142  is  shown  a  design  for  a  trestle  having  a  height  varying 
from  10  to  24  feet.  For  heights  of  5  to  10  feet  no  sway 
bracing  is  necessary.  When  the  height  is  over  24  feet, 
the  bent  is  built  in  two  stories,  the  top  story  being  about 
15  feet.  Piles  should  be  straight  and  not  less  than  10 
inches  in  diameter  at  the  small  (lower)  end.  The  braces 


FIG.  142. 

are  4  by  9  inches,  and  are  bolted  and  spiked  on  as  shown 
in  the  figure.  The  cap  is  12  by  14  inches  and  12  feet 
long;  the  piles  under  the  cap  are  spaced  2  feet  1  inch 
and  3  feet  10  inches,  as  shown;  and  the  end  piles  have 
a  batter  of  2J  inches  per  foot.  The  longest  pile  that  it 
is  practicable  to  handle  is  65  feet;  this  length  requires 
the  full  length  of  two  ordinary  flat  cars  to  transport 
them. 

279.  Split  Caps. — The  cap  of  a  pile  trestle  bent  may 
consist  of  a  solid  piece  of  12  by  12-inch  timber  fastened 


254  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

to  the  tops  of  the  piles  by  mortise  and  tenon  joints  or  by 
drift-bolts  in  the  same  manner  as  in  a  framed .  trestle 
bent,  but  the  split  cap  is  used  in  most  cases  with  piles. 
The  details  of  a  split  cap  are  shown  in  Fig.  143.  It 
consists  of  a  tenon  4  inches  thick,  as  wide  as  the 
pile,  and  as  long  as  the  depth  of  the  cap,  as  shown 
in  Figs.  143,  a  and  b.  The  cap  consists  of  two 
6  by  12  or  6  by  14-inch  timbers, 
bolted  through  the  tenon  as  shown  in 
Fig.  143,  c.  The  bolts  are  f  inch  in 
diameter,  and  usually  have  a  head  on 
one  end,  as  in  the  ordinary  bolt,  but  in 
some  cases  a  bolt  with  a  thread  and  nut 
on  each  end  is  used,  which  allows  one 
part  of  the  cap  to  be  replaced  at  a  time, 
and  also  allows  both  parts  of  the  cap  to 
be  screwed  tight  independently.  Split  caps  may  also 
be  used  on  frame  trestle  bents. 


ARTICLE  XXIII. 
TRESTLE  SUPERSTRUCTURE. 

280.  Corbels. — In  both  framed  and  pile  trestles  the 
superstructure  consists  of  everything  above  the  cap, 
viz.,  corbels,  stringers,  cross-ties,  and  guard  rails.  The 
first  sketch  in  Fig.  144  represents  a  side  view  of  the  super- 
structure at  the  bent,  and  the  second  sketch  shows  a 


TRESTLES. 


255 


longitudinal  view  of  part  of  the  superstructure,  a  a  being 
the  cap.  • 

The  corbels,  or  bolsters,  66,  for  two  8  by  16-inch 
stringers,  consist  of  a  block  8  inches  thick,  16 J  inches 
wide,  and  4  feet  long,  resting  symmetrically  upon  the  cap 
a  a  and  supporting  the  stringers  c  c.  The  corbels  are 
notched  one  inch  over  the  cap,  and  should  be  drift-bolted 
to  the  cap,  the  drift-bolts  having  countersunk  heads, 
form  part  of  the  stringer  splice,  give  a  good  bearing  for 
the  ends  of  the  stringers,  distribute  the  weight  uniformly 


jc 


a 


LL 


FIG.  144. 


over  the  part  of  the  cap  with  which  they  come  in  con- 
tact, and  fasten  the  superstructure  to  the  bent. 

281.  Stringers. — Stringers  are  the  longitudinal  tim- 
bers which  support  the  track  between  bents.  Two 
stringers  are  generally  used  under  each  rail,  three  being 
used  in  exceptional  cases.  In  Fig.  144,  c  c,  and  in  Fig. 
145  is  shown  the  arrangement  of  a  stringer  when  com- 
posed of  two  timbers.  The  timbers  are  long  enough  to 
span  the  distance  between  three  trestle  bents,  or  twice 
the  distance  between  bents,  and  are  arranged  with 
broken  joints,  the  ends  of  two  timbers  and  the  center 


256 


RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


of  the  companion  timber  being  over  the  center  of  each 
cap;  the  dotted  lines  a  a  and  b  b  in  Fig.  145  -show  the 
corbel,  c  being  the  cap. 

Two  8  by  16-inch  timbers  are  used  for  fairly  heavy 
traffic.  The  timbers  are  spliced  together  over  each  bent 
by  four  f-inch  bolts  d  d,  Fig.  144,  and  are  held  apart  by 
-cast-iron  separators  2J  inches  in  diameter,  f  inch  thick, 
with  -J-inch  holes  through  them.  The  separators  are 
shown  in  the  second  sketch  in  Fig.  144.  The  stringers 
are  fastened  to  the  corbels  by  means  of  f-inch  bolts 


n 


L_L 


! 

1      I 

i 

i 

a 

b 

c 

FIG.  145. 


FIG.  146. 


which  pass  through  the  tie,  stringer,  and  corbel,  there 
being  four  bolts  to  each  corbel,  as  shown  in  Fig.  144. 

282.  Length  of  Stringers. — When  the  stringers  act 
as  a  simple  beam  between  bents,  the  distance  between 
the  centers  of  bents  is  usually  12,  13,  or  14  feet,  some 
railroads  specifying  12  feet  for  main  line  and  14  feet  for 
branch  lines,  on  trestles  of  ordinary  height.  In  a  high 
trestle,  within  limits,  the  longer  the  span  between  bents, 
the  cheaper  the  trestle.  In  the  endeavor  to  follow  the 
above  principle,  the  stringers  in  some  cases  have  been 
made  longer  and  stiffened  by  the  system  of  braces  shown 
in  Fig.  146;  this  is  seldom  done,  however,  simple  stringers 
being  used  in  .almost  all  cases.  It  is  very  difficult  and  ex- 


TRESTLES.  257 

pensive  to  get  8  by  16-inch  stringers  in  lengths  greater 
than  24  or  26  feet;  therefore  when  the  span  between 
bents  is  made  more  than  13  or  at  most  14  feet,  both 
timbers  forming  the  stringer  must  join  over  the  center  of 
each  bent. 

283.  Cross-ties. — Cross-ties  for  bridges  and  trestles 
are  usually  sawed  and  are  6  by  8  inches  and  9  feet  long, 
and  are  spaced  about  14  inches  center  to  center  on  main 
line  and  16  inches  on  branches.     They  are  fastened  to 
the  stringers  with  5  by  f-inch  dowels. 

284.  Guard  Rails  — Guard  rails  are  usually  8  or  9 
inches  wide  and  5  or  6  inches  deep,  are  notched  1  inch 
over  the  ties,  and  are  fastened  to  the  ties  by  7  by  f-inch 


FIG.  147. 

lag  screws.  The  inner  edge  of  the  guard  rail  is  one  foot 
from  the  gauge  of  the  rail,  as  shown  in  Fig.  144.  The 
above  is  the  manner  of  arranging  the  guard  rail  in  most 
general  use,  but  it  is  a  question  whether  it  is  not  as  much 
of  a  menace  as  it  is  a  safety  device.  If  the  train  leaves 
the  rails,  and  the  outer  forward  wheel  strikes  the  guard 
rail,  as  arranged  in  Fig.  144,  it  is  possible,  if  not  probable, 
that  the  guard  rail  will  cause  the  truck  to  slew  around 
into  a  position  that  will  almost  certainly  throw  it  ofl 
the  trestle.  A  much  safer  method  of  placing  guard  rails 
is  shown  in  Fig.  147,  and  is  used  extensively,  particularly 
on  bridges,  the  guard  rails  being  parallel  to  the  main 
rails  and  five  inches  from  them  throughout  the  length 
of  the  trestle  or  bridge,  and  are  brought  together  at  the 
17 


258 


RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


center  of  the  track  beyond  the  limits  of  the  opening. 
If  the  train  jumps  the  track,  with  this  arrangement  of 
guard  rails  the  inner  wheel  strikes  the  guard  rail  and  the 
tendency  is  to  throw  the  wheel  back  to  the  rail  it  left. 
Probably  the  best  method  would  be  to  have  the  inner 
guard  rails  shown  in  Fig.  147  for  safety  and  the  outer 
guard  rails  to  please  the  public. 

Long  trestles,  particularly  high  ones,  should  be  oper- 
ated with  the  train  under  complete  control. 

285.  Ballast  Roadbed  for  Trestles.*— In  Fig.  148 
is  shown  the  cross-section  of  a  ballast  floor  system  for  a 


FIG.  148. 

pile  trestle.  The  cap  A  A  is  14  by  16  inches  and  16  feet 
long,  and  is  drift-bolted  to  six  piles  forming  the  trestle 
bent,  the  bents  being  14  feet  apart.  Nineteen  8  by  14- 
inch  stringers  B  B,  four  of  which  are  28  feet,  and  fifteen 
of  which  are  14  feet  long,  rest  directly  upon  the  caps 
and  form  the  floor  of  the  roadbed.  The  four  28-foot 
stringers  are  placed  one  on  each  outer  edge  and  one  under 
each  rail.  The  stringers  are  held  in  position  by  2  by  6- 
inch  planks  C  C,  which  are  spiked  to  the  bottoms  of 
the  stringers  by  6  by  f-inch  boat  spikes,  D  D.  Two  strips 
C  C  are  used  at  each  bent,  one  being  spiked  on  each  side 
*  Illinois  Central  Railroad. 


TRESTLES.  259 

of  the  cap.  The  ballast  is  retained  by  8  by  10-inch 
timbers  E  E,  28  feet  long,  which  are  fastened  over  the  out- 
side stringers  as  shown  in  the  figure,  f-inch  bolts  F  F, 
41  inches  Jong,  running  through  this  timber,  the  stringer, 
and  the  cap.  The  timbers  E  E  are  also  held  in  place  and 
kept  from  overturning  by  cast-iron  angles  G  G,  which  are 
bolted  to  the  timber  and  the  stringers.  Cross-ties 
H  H,  6  by  8  inches  and  8  feet  long,  are  laid  with  one  foot 
of  ballast  under  them.  The  ballast  extends  horizontally 
one  foot  from  each  end  of  the  tie  and  then  has  a  slope 
of  1  on  U. 

All  the  timbers  in  the  above  structure  are  first  framed 
and  then  creosoted  and  erected.  There  is  a  space  of  one 
inch  between  the  stringers,  which  allows  the  water  to 
drain  out,  thus  reducing  the  tendency  of  the  timbers 
to  decay. 

This  form  of  trestle  superstructure  has  two  important 
advantages  over  the  ordinary  superstructure,  viz.,  it  is 
far  less  liable  to  be  damaged  by  fire,  and  if  any  part  of  the 
trestle  settles,  the  track  can  be  put  in  true  line  and  sur- 
face in  the  same  way  as  on  ordinary  roadbed.  It  has 
the  disadvantage  of  being  more  expensive,  and  is  used 
only  for  permanent  structures. 

286.  Trestles  on  Curves. — In  order  to  run  at  full 
speed  around  a  curve  it  is  necessary  to  elevate  the  outer 
rail  so  as  to  counterbalance  the  centrifugal  force  of  the 
train.  One  rule  is  to  elevate  the  outer  rail  1  inch  for 
each  degree  of  curvature  up  to  6  inches  for  a  6-degree 
curve,  and  for  curves  sharper  than  6  degrees  to  reduce 
the  speed  a  proportionate  amount.  The  outer  rail  of  a 
trestle  on  a  curve  is  raised  by  one  of  the  following  meth- 


260  RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

ods:  (1)  sloping  the  foundation;  (2)  an  unsymmetrical 
bent;   (3)  changing  the  shape  of  the  cap;   (4)  changing 
the  shape  of  the  corbels ;  and  (5)  by  means  of  the  cross- 
ties.     If  the  trestle  is  on  a   uniform   curve,  the  same 
amount  of  elevation  must  be  made  at  each  point,  but  if  it 
is  on  a  transition  curve,  the  amount 
of  superelevation  must  be  changed 
at  each  point.     In  all  of  the  above 
methods  the  trestle  bent  is  made  sym- 
metrical except  in  the  second  case.  In 
framed  trestle  bents  it  is  much  better 
FIG.  149.  practice  to  use  some   method  that 

keeps  the  bent  symmetrical.  It  is 
comparatively  easy  to  adjust  pile  trestles,  as  it  is  only 
necessary  to  saw  the  piles  off  at  the  proper  elevation. 

287.  Sloping  Foundation. — One  of  the  best  meth- 
ods of  providing  for  superelevation  of  the  outer  rail 
is  to  slope  the  foundation,  either  masonry  or  mud-block, 
at  the  proper  rate,  and  use  a  symmetrical  bent.  If.  the 
rail  were  to  be  raised  4  inches  for 
a  4-degree  curve,  assuming  the  width 
of  track  between  centers  of  rails  to 
be  5  feet,  the  foundation  would  be 
sloped  at  the  rate  of  4  inches  in 


5    feet,    or   £    inch    per   foot.     This  FIG>  150. 

method  is  shown  in  Fig.  149. 

288.  Unsymmetrical  Bent. — This  method  is  shown 
in  Fig.  150,  and  consists  in  making  the  outer  vertical 
and  batter  post  longer  by  an  amount  sufficient  to  give 
the  required  slope  to  the  cap,  the  sill  and  foundation  re- 
maining level.  The  work  of  framing  an  unsymmetrical 


TRESTLES.  261 

bent  is  considerably  greater  than  for  a  symmetrical 
bent. 

289.  Changing  the  Shape  of  the  Cap. — The  super- 
elevation may  be  provided  for  by  changing  the  shape  of 
the  cap  in  two  ways,  viz.,  by  means  of  a  notched  cap 
and  by  a  cushion  cap. 

A  notched  cap  is  shown  in  Fig.  151,  and  consists  in 
cutting  away  a  part  of  the  top  of  the  cap  by  an  amount 


FIG.  151 

equal  to  the  required  superelevation.  In  doing  this, 
care  must  be  taken  not  to  make  the  smaller  end  too 
thin,  and  if  the  notch  is  to  be  deep,  it  will  be  necessary 
to  increase  the  depth  of  the  original  cap. 

A  cushion  cap  is  shown  in  Fig.  152.  The  small  end 
of  the  cushion  timber  should  not  be  too  thin ;  in  order  to 
prevent  this,  it  may  be  better  in  some  cases  to  make  the 


FIG.  152. 

depth  of  the  cap  an  inch  or  two  less,  adding  the  differ- 
ence to  the  thickness  of  the  cushion.  The  cushion  must 
be  firmly  fastened  to  the  cap,  preferably  with  bolts. 

290.  Corbels  of  Different  Thickness. — In  using 
corbels  of  different  thickness,  the  amount  of  the  super- 
elevation must  be  added  to  the  thickness  of  the  outer 
corbel,  as  it  would  not  be  good  practice  to  weaken  the 


262  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

inner  corbel  by  making  it  thinner  in  order  to  allow  for 
part  of  the  superelevation. 

The  methods  of  providing  for  the  superelevation  of 
the  outer  rail  described  above  are  more  economical  than 
those  that  follow,  as  the  changes  are  made  to  the  bents 
and  below  the  stringers  and  the  superstructure  is  not 
changed. 

291.  Special  Cross-ties.  —  Superelevation  of  the 
outer  rail  may  be  provided  for  above  the  stringers  in 
three  ways,  viz.,  by  two  forms  of  cross-ties  and  by  blocks. 

In  Fig.  153,  a,  is  shown  a  cross-tie  sawed  to  the  required 

shape;  in  Fig.  153,  fr,  is  shown 
a  regulation  cross-tie  with 
blocks  under  the  rails,  and 
'(^  '  r~*~*  \h  'm  Fig.  153,  c,  is  shown  a 

cushion  tie.  The  first  and 

I  ""^Hc      last  methods  are  preferable 

FIG.  153/  to  the  second,  and  the  first 

is  probably  the  best  of  the 

three  methods.  The  method  in  Fig.  153,  a,  requires  a  tie 
considerably  thicker  than  the  regulation  thickness,  at  the 
outer  end,  and  it  may  be  made  not  less  than  4  inches 
thick  at  the  inner  end,  which  for  a  6-degree  curve  would 
require  a  maximum  thickness  of  10  inches  at  the  outer 
end,  and  require  that  the  ties  be  cut  from  8  by  10-inch 
timber.  A  properly  proportioned  cushion-tie,  in  addi- 
tion to  the  regulation  tie  under  it,  would  require  con- 
siderably more  timber  than  the  tie  shown  in  Fig.  153,  a. 

Considering  all  the  methods  for  providing  for  the 
superelevation  of  the  outer  rail  on  curves,  tipping  the 
entire  bent,  or  sloping  the  foundation  is  the  best  method, 


TRESTLES.  263 

not  only  on  account  of  all  the  parts  of  the  structure  being 
symmetrical,  but  also  on  account  of  the  thrust  of  the 
train  being  normal  to  the  foundation;  of  the  other 
methods,  the  most  economical  is  probably  the  method 
described  in  If  290,  viz.,  corbels  of  different  thickness. 

292.  Locating  and  Erecting  Trestles. — The  resident 
engineer  makes  a  situation  plan  showing  the  location  of 
each  bent,  and  places  a  stake  on  the  center  line  at  the 
exact  location  of  the  center  of  the  bent.     The  elevation 
of  the  bottom  of  the  sill  is  marked  on  the  stake,  and  the 
contractor  builds  the  foundation  to  the  exact   level. 
The  elevation  of  bottom  of  rail  and  bottom  of  sill  is  given 
to   the   contractor;    then,    knowing  the   constant   dis- 
tance from  the  base  of  rail  to  the  top  of  the  cap,  the  bent 
is  framed  and  put  together,  and  raised  to  its  proper 
position  on  the  foundation.     The  bent  is  held  in  place 
by  guys  or  temporary  bracing  until  the  stringers  are 
placed  between  it  and  the  preceding  bent ;  then  the  guys 
or  temporary  bracing  can  be  removed,  and  the  balance 
of  the  floor  system  put  in  place. 

293.  Pony  Bents. — Where  an  entire  opening  is  oc- 
cupied by  a  trestle,  there  must  be  a  support  for  the 
stringers  at  each  end  of  the  trestle  where  they  reach  the 
cut;  a  pony  bent  is  used  for  this  purpose.     In  Fig.  154, 
let  A  B  be  the  grade  of  the  base  of  the  rail  and  C  D  the 
slope  of  the  ground  at  the  end  of  the  opening,  C  being 
the  grade  point.     At  the  point  E  where  the  ends  of  the 
stringers  reach,  a  pony  bent  E  F  is  placed,  E  F  being  a 
side  view  of  the  bent.     An  excavation  is  made  to  a  depth 
that  will  give  good  support  for  the  mud-blocks  a  a,  a 
regulation  bent  is  framed,  the  only  difference  being  that 


264 


RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


the  posts  b  b  are  only  two  or  three  feet  high.  The  entire 
back  of  the  bent  is  boarded  up  with  2-inch  planks,  c  c, 
and  the  back  of  the  bent  is  filled  up  with  earth  to  sub- 
grade,  as  shown  in  Fig.  154. 


A   c 


x MM          bJLj 

F  D^a  a 

FlG.    154. 


294.  Trestles  Instead  of  Borrow.— When  a  trestle 
is  used  instead  of  borrow,  the  end  of  the  trestle  is  usually 
made  as  in  Fig.  155.  The  trestle  is  built  as  far  as  the 
embankment  reaches,  the  foundations  for  every  bent 
being  placed  on  the  original  ground  surface,  the  end  bent 


FIG.  155. 

being  completely  buried  by  the  embankment,  or  a  pony 
bent  may  be  used  as  shown  at  a  a',  Fig.  155. 

The  end  of  the  fill  a  e  has  a  slope  of  1  on  1J  and  covers 
the  lower  part  of  one  or  more  bents.     If  the  fills  are  made 


TRESTLES.  265 

early  in  the  construction  of  the  road,  are  of  heavy  mate- 
rial, and  have  had  ample  time,  to  settle,  and  the  trestle  is 
built  last,  sometimes  the  mud-blocks  are  placed  in  the 
slope  a  e  of  the  fill,  in  the  same  manner  as  the  pony  bent 
is  placed,  and  no  part  of  the  trestle  is  buried  by  the  fill. 
There  is  always  danger  of  additional  settling,  and  it  is 
far  safer  to  run  the  bents  from  the  original  ground  sur- 
face. The  part  of  the  timber  that  is  buried  will  decay 
rapidly;  therefore  in  a  permanent  structure  masonry 
foundations  are  built  to  a  height  from  the  ground  that 
wrill  prevent  any  part  of  the  structure  being  buried. 

295.  Protection    against    Fire. — Constant    care    is 
necessary  to  guard  against  the  destruction  of  trestles 
by  fire,  not  only  by  incendiaries,  but  also  by  live  coals 
dropping  from  the  firebox  of  the  locomotive.     In  order 
to  guard  against  the  danger  of  the 'locomotive  setting 
fire  to  the  trestle,  some  railroads  cover  the  caps  of  the 
bents  with  a  strip  of  galvanized  iron;    others  use  the 
ballast  floor  system  partly  for  this  reason.     In  all  cases 
barrels  of  water  are  placed  on  the  trestle  at  intervals  of 
200  or  300  feet,  if  water  is  not  otherwise  accessible, 
special  platforms  being  built  at  the  level  of  the  track  to 
hold  the  barrels. 

296.  Cost  of  Framed  Trestles.— The  cost  of  framed 
trestles  depends  principally  on  the  cost  of  timber  de- 
livered on  the  site  of  the  trestle.     Trestles  cost  less  in  a 
timber  country.     If  timber  must  be  brought  from  a 
distance,  three  items  of  cost  must  be  considered,  viz., 
(1)  the  cost  of  the  timber  at  the  mill;  (2)  the  freight  to 
the  nearest  point,  and  (3)  hauling  to  the  site  of  the 
trestle.     The  cost  of  timber  trestles  depends  upon  the 


266  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

cost  of  the  timber,  the  amount  of  iron  used,  and  the  cost 
of  erection.  Contractors  usually  bid  a  price  per  thou- 
sand feet  B.  M.  for  the  timber  in  the  finished  trestle,  in- 
cluding all  timber,  iron,  and  work.  In  the  timber 
country  trestles  may  be  built  for  $24  per  thousand  feet 
B.  M.  In  sections  remote  from  the  timber  country 
a  trestle  of  long-leaf  yellow  pine  may  cost  $30  or  more 
per  thousand  feet  B.  M.  The  amount  of  iron  used  hi  a 
trestle  depends  upon  the  detailed  design,  but  will  be 
about  $2.00  per  thousand  feet  B.  M.  of  timber. 

PROBLEMS. 

(a)  How  many  thousand  feet  B.  M.  will  there  be  in  a  trestle 
bent  proportioned  as  in  Figs.  132  and  144,  the  distance  from  the 
bottom  of  sill  to  base  of  rail  being  24  feet? 

(6)  How  many  thousand  feet  B.  M.  will  there  be  in  the  foundation 
of  the  above  bent,  if  proportioned  as  in  Fig.  141? 

(c)  How  many  thousand  feet  B.  M.  will  there  be  in  the  stringers, 
corbels,  ties,  and  guard  rails  if  the  spans  are  12  feet  and  the  dimen- 
sions as  in  f 's  280,  281,  283,  and  284? 

(d)  What  is  the  cost  of  the  above  trestle  per  running  foot  at 
$30  per  thousand  B.  M.? 


CHAPTER  VIII. 
CULVERTS. 


ARTICLE  XXIV. 
DRAINAGE. 

297.  Items  Governing  Drainage. — One  of  the  most 
important  problems  in  connection  with  railroad  con- 
struction is  the  determination  of  the  size  of  the  openings 
required  by  the  streams  over  which  the  line  passes, 
usually  referred  to  as  drainage.     It  is  practically  im- 
possible to  determine  the  required  area  of  waterway  by 
theoretical   methods.     Many   elements   enter   into   the 
discussion,  and  an  approximation  to  the  true  area  is 
made.    The  principal  points  to  be  determined  as  closely 
as  possible  are  as  follows : 

1.  Rate  of  rainfall. 

2.  Area  of  the  watershed. 

3.  Shape  of  the  watershed. 

4.  Character  of  soil  and  vegetation. 

5.  Slope  of  watershed. 

298.  Rate  of  Rainfall. — The  rate  of  rainfall  varies 
with  the  locality,  different  sections  of  country  having  not 
only  different  average  yearly  rainfalls,  but  heavy  storms 

267 


268  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

of  short  duration  are  more  common  in  some  localities 
than  in  others.  Very  heavy  rates  of  rainfall  are  usually 
of  short  duration,  but  they  occur  more  frequently  hi  some 
sections,  and  an  immense  amount  of  water  falls  in  a  short 
time.  The  very  heavy  rate  of  rainfall  seldoms  covers 
more  than  a  small  part  of  the  territory  over  which  the 
storm  occurs.  In  the  United  States  records  covering  a 
number  of  years  have  been  kept,  and  it  is  possible  to  ob- 
tain data  of  the  maximum,  minimum,  and  average  an- 
nual rainfall,  and  the  rate  of  rainfall,  duration  of  the 
storm,  and  territory  covered  by  sudden  heavy  storms, 
of  all  parts  of  the  country. 

299.  Area  of  Watershed. — In  parts  of  the  United 
States  that  have  been  thoroughly  mapped  by  the  U.  S. 
Geological  Survey  it  is  possible  to  determine  the  area  of 
the  watershed  of  small  sections  of  country  from  the  maps 
sold  by  the  U.  S.  Geological  Survey,  particularly  if  the 
watershed  is  of  considerable  size.  If  the  watershed  is 
small,  it  will  be  necessary  to  determine  the  area  in  a  more 
accurate  manner,  and  it  may  be  necessary  to  run  a 
stadia  survey  around  the  watershed,  the  survey  cor- 
responding to  a  rough  farm  survey.  The  notes  of  the 
survey  should  be  plotted,  the  error  of  closure  showing  the 
accuracy  of  the  work,  and  the  area  computed.  The 
area  may  be  computed  by  latitude  and  longitude  differ- 
ences, but  it  will  be  accurate  enough  to  measure  the  plat 
with  a  planimeter,  or  by  counting  the  squares  if  plotted 
on  cross-section  paper ;  it  will  be  seen  later  that  the  area 
need  not  be  determined  with  great  accuracy.  The  size 
of  the  drainage  area  governs  the  total  amount  of  water 
that  runs  off.  * 


CULVERTS.  269 

300.  Shape  of  Watershed. — The  shape  of  the  water- 
shed can  be  determined  at  the  same  time  that  the  area  is 
obtained.     The  shape  of  the  watershed  is  as  important 
as  its  size.     If  it  is  long  and  narrow,  or  has  long  branches, 
a  large  proportion  of  the  total  rainfall  will  pass  through 
the  opening  before  the  water  from  the  farthest  portions 
reaches  the  opening,  particularly  if  the  area  is  large  and 
the  slopes  flat.     The  other  extreme  is  an  almost  circular 
basin  with  steep  slopes,  in  which  case  a  proportionately 
larger  opening  must  be  provided. 

301.  Character  of  Soil  and  Vegetation. — A  large 
proportion  of  the  rainfall  will  percolate  through  a  sandy 
or  cultivated  soil  arid  will  not  be  a  part  of  the  flood-flow. 
A  clay  or  uncultivated  soil  will  absorb  very  little  of  the 
rainfall  and  the  full  amount  runs  off  immediately.     Vege- 
tation of  any  kind  tends  to  retard  the  run-off  by  absorb- 
ing part  of  it  and  also  by  interfering  with  the  flow  over 
the  surface.     Rocks  and  trees  also  interfere  with  a  free 
flow  and  retard  the  rate  of  run-off. 

302.  Slope  of  Watershed. — The  slopes  of  the  water- 
shed are  one  of  the  most  important  items  in  governing 
the  rate  of  run-off.     If  the  side  slopes  are  steep,  and  the 
slope  of  the  main  stream  is  also  steep,  as  in  a  mountain 
gorge,  the  stream  becomes  a  torrent  almost  as  soon  as  the 
storm  begins,  and  the  largest  openings  hi  proportion  to 
the  area  of  the  watershed  must  be  provided.     If,  on  the 
other  hand,  all  the  slopes  are  flat,  in  which  case  there  is 
usually  vegetation,  the  slowest  rate  of  run-off  will  be 
found. 

303.  Methods  of  Estimating  the  Area  of  Water- 
way.— It  will  be  seen  from  the  discussion  of  the  five 


270  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

governing  items  that  a  theoretical  formula  for  determin- 
ing the  area  of  waterway,  or  opening,  required  is  an  im- 
possibility. There  are  two  ways  of  estimating  the  area 
of  opening  required: 

1.  Empirical  formulas. 

2.  By  observation. 

Both  methods  must  be  governed  by  good  judgment 
and  experience.  There  are  a  number  of  empirical  rules 
for  computing  the  required  area  of  waterway,  two  of 
which  are  in  common  use,  viz-.,  Myer's  Formula  and 
Talbot's  Formula. 

304.  Myer's  Formula.—  Myer's  formula  is 

A  —  C  i/area  of  watershed  in  acres 

in  which  A  is  the  area  of  waterway  in  square  feet,  C  is  a 
coefficient  varying  from  1  for  a  flat  country  under  cul- 
tivation to  4  for  a  mountainous  country  and  rocky 
ground.  This  formula  is  deficient  in  that  it  does  not 
take  into  account  the  rate  of  rainfall  and  the  shape  of 
the  watershed,  and  gives  the  same  area  of  waterway  for 
all  parts  of  the  world,  which  is  manifestly  untrue.  In 
determining  the  value  of  the  constant  C  to  use,  the  en- 
gineer must  keep  in  mind  the  five  items  of  ]f  297,  to- 
gether with  experience  in  the  same  general  region  in 
which  the  opening  is  located. 

305.  Talbot's  Formula.—  Talbot's  formula  is 


=          (  acres) 


in  which  A  is  the  area  of  waterway  in  square  feet,  C  is  a 
coefficient  ranging  from  1  for  steep  rocky  ground  to  \  for 


CULVERTS.  271 

a  long  flat  valley,  and  the  acres  under  the  radical  sign 
is  the  area  of  the  watershed.  In  this  formula  the  co- 
efficient C  has  the  following  values : 

C  =  1,  for  short  valleys  with  steep  rocky  slopes. 
C  =  \,  for  a  rolling  agricultural  valley  three  or  four  times  as 
long  as  wide  and  subject  to  floods  due  to  melting  snow. 
C  =  £  or  i,  for  long  valleys  where  there  is  not  much  snow. 

This  formula  takes  into  account,  depending  upon  the 
judgment  of  the  engineer,  four  of  the  five  items  in  ^f  297, 
but  does  not  take  into  account  the  rate  of  rainfall.  Both 
of  the  above  methods  are  in  reality  only  a  careful  guess 
as  to  the  area  of  waterway  required,  based  upon  the 
number  of  acres  in  the  drainage  basin. 

306.  Example. — Assume  the  area  of  the  drainage 
basin,  or  watershed,  to  be  1000  acres.  From  Myer's 
formula  area  of  waterway  required  will  be  between  32 
and  128  square  feet;  and  from  Talbot's  formula,  30  to 
178  square  feet.  These  results  show  a  very  close  agree- 
ment for  the  minimum  area  of  waterway,  but  a  con- 
siderable variation  for  the  maximum.  It  devolves  upon 
the  engineer  to  approximate  between  these  extremes  and 
obtain  as  near  as  possible  to  the  true  area.  An  ex- 
perienced engineer  will  be  able  to  approximate  the  true 
area  of  waterway  required  close  enough  for  all  practical 
purposes. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  determine  the  area  of  waterway 
with  extreme  accuracy.  The  area  of  opening  can  be 
increased  considerably  by  a  small  increase  of  masonry. 
Other  conditions  being  equal,  a  circular  culvert  8  feet  in 
diameter  will  discharge  nearly  twice  as  much  as  a  cul- 


272  RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

vert  6  feet  in  diameter ;  but  an  8-foot  culvert  will  cost  far 
less  than  twice  as  much  as  a  6-foot  culvert. 

307.  Practical  Methods   of   Determining  Water- 
way.— There  are  two  practical  methods  of  determining 
the  required  area  of  waterway,  viz.,  by  comparison  and 
by    observation    and    measurement.     The    safest    and 
easiest  method  is,  where  possible,  to  observe  the  action 
of  a  culvert  over  the  same  stream.     This  method  can 
seldom  be  used  for  small  openings,  as  a  short  stream  is 
not  likely  to  be  crossed  by  another  road,  but  on  larger 
streams  it  is  frequently  possible  to  find  another  bridge 
which  may  be  used  for  comparison. 

When  the  conditions  are  such  that  it  is  impossible  to 
determine  the  area  of  opening  within  reasonable  limits, 
it  will  in  some  cases  be  economical  to  put  in  a  temporary 
trestle  and  observe  the  conditions  during  heavy  rainfalls. 
A  trestle  will  last  eight  or  ten  years,  which  will  give  ample 
time  to  study  the  problem  and  obtain  data  from  which 
an  economical  structure  can  be  built.  The  depth,  area 
of  cross-section,  and  velocity  of  the  water  should  be 
measured  during  the  heaviest  storm,  and  the  volume  of 
water  in  cubic  feet  per  second  be  computed.  The  cul- 
vert can  then  be  designed  economically. 

308.  Storm  Flow  and  Economic  Design. — It  is  not 
economical  to  attempt  to  design  a  culvert  with  a  water- 
way large  enough  for  any  storm  that  might  occur.    Every 
few  years  there  is  an  unusually  heavy  storm.     At  longer 
periods — twenty,  thirty,  or  forty  years — there  may  be  a 
storm  that  breaks  all  previous  records,  or  at  least  "as 
bad  as  the  storm  of  forty  years  ago"  which  exists  in  the 
mind  of  all  "old  inhabitants."     To  build  a  culvert  to 


CULVERTS.  273 

carry  a  storm  of  the  last-mentioned  variety  would  re- 
quire an  opening  considerably  larger  than  for  ordinary 
storms,  and  the  cost  would  be  excessive.  This  is  not 
economy,  for  two  reasons:  First,  if  well  built,  a  culvert 
will  not  necessarily  fail  when  its  opening  is  insufficient, 
as  the  water  can  back  up  and  discharge  under  a  head; 
and,  second,  the  interest  on  the  difference  in  the  first 
cost  required  to  build  the  "safe"  culvert  and  the  culvert 
to  withstand  ordinary  conditions  will,  if  compounded, 
more  than  pay  for  the  few  culverts  that  may  be  destroyed. 
Culverts  are  therefore  built  to  carry  the  ordinary  heavy 
storms. 

PROBLEM. 

A  culvert  costs  $3000,  is  washed  out  at  the  end  of  twenty  years, 
and  then  rebuilt  at  a  cost  of  $3000.  How  does  the  final  cost  com- 
pare with  the  supposition  that  if  it  had  been  built  larger,  at  a  cost 
of  $4500,  it  would  not  have  washed  out,  interest  at  5  per  cent.? 


ARTICLE  XXV. 
CULVERTS. 

309.  Pipe  Culverts. — Culverts  are  necessary  at  the 
lowest  point  of  all  railroad  fills  in  order  that  the  water 
may  run  off  without  obstruction ;  they  usually  consist  of 
pipes,  single-box,  double-box,  or  arch  culverts,  the  first 
mentioned  being  for  the  smaller  openings. 

For  small  drainage  areas  the  most  convenient  form  of 
culvert  is  the  pipe  culvert.  The  pipe  may  be  either 
second-grade  cast-iron  or  double-strength  vitrified  tile 
18 


274  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

pipe.  Both  kinds  range  in  size  from  12  to  30  inches  in 
diameter;  a  smaller  size  than  12  inches  is  not  used  on 
account  of  the  danger  of  obstruction.  Pipes  36,  42,  and 
48  inches  in  diameter  are  advertised,  but  only  a  small 
supply  of  these  sizes  is  kept  in  stock,  as  they  are  not  used 
as  much  as  smaller  sizes.  These  sizes  must  be  ordered 
some  time  in  advance  if  a  large  quantity  is  desired. 
Thirty-inch  pipe  is  the  usual  maximum,  and  will  be  ample 
for  an  area  of  2  acres  under  the  quickest,  and  25  acres 
under  the  slowest,  run-off. 

310.  Tile  Pipe. — When  the  embankment  is  not  more 

than  10 -or  12  feet  high,  tile 
pipe  is  better  than  iron  pipe, 
being  easier  to  handle,  more 
I^OJ     durable,   and  cheaper.     Tile 
pipe  is  more  easily  broken  in 
FIG.  156.  handling,  but  if  care  is  taken 

to  cover  it  sufficiently  with 

earth  before  dumping  stone  on  it,  after  it  is  laid  it  is  just 
as  strong  for  all  practical  purposes  as  cast-iron  pipe.  Tile 
pipe  is  made  in  lengths  of  2J  and  2  feet  for  small  and 
large  size  respectively. 

In  laying  tile  pipe  the  trench  is  excavated  with  vertical 
sides  to  the  depth  of  the  horizontal  diameter  of  the  pipe; 
the  bottom  of  the  trench  is  then  shaped  as  shown  in  Fig. 
156,  so  that  the  bottom  will  be  to  true  grade  and  afford 
a  uniform  bed  for  the  body  of  the  pipe,  the  earth  being 
removed  under  each  bell  end  so  that  the  pipe  will  not 
rest  on  the  bell.  After  the  trench  has  been  properly 
shaped  and  the  pipe  laid  in,  fine  earth  is  thrown  around 
the  pipe  and  rammed  so  that  the  pipe  will  be  supported 


•     CULVERTS.  275 

uniformly  throughout  its  length.  When  the  soil  is  soft, 
it  sometimes  becomes  necessary  to  lay  the  pipe  in  a  con- 
crete foundation,  as  shown  in  Fig.  156,  6.  In  some  cases 
a  plain  timber  platform  is  used  instead  of  concrete. 

Some  engineers  advocate  filling  the  joints  with  cement, 
but  it  seems  better  practice  to  leave  the  joints  uncalked, 
in  which  case  water  in  the  fill  may  find  its  way  into  the 
pipe,  and  in  case  of  the  pipe  settling  it  is  less  liable  to  be 
broken. 

For  culverts  double-strength,  salt-glazed,  vitrified 
pipe  should  be  used. 

311.  Iron  Pipe. — Second-grade  iron  pipe  is  used  for 
culverts  if  it  can  be  obtained,  being  equally  as  good  for 
the  purpose  and  considerably  cheaper  than  first-quality 
pipe.     It  consists  of  pipe  that  has  been  condemned  as 
first  quality  on  account  of  minor  defects,  such  as  small 
blowholes  or  imperfect  bell  end.     First-quality  cast-iron 
pipe  is  designed  to  withstand  internal  pressure,  as  in  a 
water-main;    defects  that  would  be  fatal  in  a  water- 
main  would  not  hurt  the  pipe  at  all  for  a  culvert.     Cast- 
iron  pipes  are  made  in  12-foot  lengths,  and  the  larger 
sizes  are  heavy  and  awkward  to  handle.     They  are  laid 
in  the  same  manner  as  vitrified  pipes,  and  the  same  dis- 
cussion applies  to  the  joints,  except  that  cast-iron  pipe 
with,  cemented  joints  is  more  liable  to  break  in  case  of 
the  foundation  settling,  on  account  of  its  greater  length. 

312.  End  Walls  for  Pipe  Culverts. — In  pipe  culverts, 
either  vitrified  or  cast-iron,  the  ends  must  be  protected 
by  masonry  so  that  the  pipe  is  held  firmly  in  place  and 
water  cannot  enter  and  seep  through  the  fill  along  the 
outside  of  the  pipe.     The  masonry  may  be  stone,  brick, 


276 


RAILROAD   TRACK   AND    CONSTRUCTION. 


or  concrete,  may  have  a  plain  vertical  face,  or  may  have 
wing  walls  where  the  pipe  is  large.  The  simplest  form 
of  end  wall  is  shown  in  Fig.  157,  being  a  rectangular  wall 
of  concrete.  The  foundation  must  be  at  least  two  feet 
deep  in  order  to  be  below  the  frost  line.  The  other  di- 
mensions will  depend  upon  the  size  of  the  pipe  and  the 
height  of  the  embankment  to  be  retained.  A  culvert  24 
inches  or  less  in  diameter  will  not  need  a  more  elaborate 


PLAN 


FIG.  157. 


arrangement  than  that  shown  in  Fig.  157,  but  a  culvert 
30  inches  or  more  in  diameter  may  need  wing  walls,  an 
apron  wall,  and  a  paved  entrance,  in  some  cases.  As 
end  walls  for  pipe  culverts  are  usually  neither  high,  wide, 
nor  deep,  it  is  more  convenient  to  build  them  of  concrete 
or  brick,  unless  suitable  stone  is  found  close  at  hand  and 
cheaper.  In  some  cases,  owing  to  scarcity  of  material 
and  there  being  little  danger  of  the  culvert  being  injured 
in  the  meantime,  the  end  walls  are  not  built  immediately, 


CULVERTS. 


277 


in  which  cases  the  materials  may  be  delivered  after  the 
track  is  laid,  thus  reducing  the  cost. 

313.  Timber  Box  Culverts. — In  country  where  tim- 
ber is  plentiful  and  stone  or  pipe  hard  to  obtain,  cul- 
verts are  sometimes  built  of  timber.  They  are  built 
large  enough  to  allow  the  permanent  structure  to  be 
built  or  placed  inside  of  them,  so  that  it  will  not  be 
necessary  to  cut  a  trench  through  the  embankment. 
In  Fig.  158  is  shown  the  general  arrangement  of  a  3  by  4- 
foot  timber  box  culvert.  At  intervals  of  about  4  feet 
2  by  12-inch  cross-pieces,  a  a,  5  feet  long  are  placed. 


c    d 

" 

\ 

1 

1 

1 

; 

-     " 
1 

I 

^^•K-^ 

1 

^FXsWf 
1 

«*?=         -=y-       ^               ~^r~ 

SECTION  A-B 
FIG.  158. 

The  timbers  forming  the  walls  of  the  culvert  and  the  2  by 
12-inch  planks  forming  the  floor  are  laid  on  the  cross- 
pieces.  The  12  by  12-inch  timbers  forming  the  side 
walls  are  laid  as  shown  in  the  figure  and  drift-bolted  to- 
gether. The  top  is  formed  of  12  by  12  and  8  by  12-inch 
timbers  placed  as  shown,  the. end  timber  c  being  12  by 
12  inches,  5  feet  long,  and  laid  on  the  side  wall  timbers. 
The  second  cover  timber  c?  is  12  by  12  inches  and  notched 
four  inches,  so  that  it  acts  as  a  strut  to  hold  the  side  walls 
from  being  pushed  inward  by  the  thrust  of  the  embank- 
ment. Every  fourth  cover  timber  is  notched  in  this  way, 


278  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

and  the  balance  of  the  cover  timbers  are  8  by  12-inch 
timbers  laid  with  the  8-inch  dimension  vertical,  all  the 
cover  timbers  being  5  feet  long. 

The  end  of  the  culvert  may  be  stepped  as  shown  in 
the  figure,  thus  forming  straight  wing  walls,  or  may  be 
cut  off  square,  forming  a  vertical  face.  All  timbers 
should  be  drift-bolted  together. 

At  the  present  price  of  timber  it  is  only  in  extreme 
cases  that  timber  culverts  are  economical,  and  very  few 
of  them  are  built  at  the  present  time,  particularly  as 
they  are  at  best  only  temporary,  not  lasting  more  than 
eight  or  ten  years. 

314.  Stone  Box   Culverts. — Waterways  under  em- 
bankments are  built  of  masonry  whenever  it  is  econom- 
ically possible.     A  piece  of  well-laid  masonry  is  practi- 
cally indestructible,  and  in  the  long  run  is  cheaper  than 
temporary  structures  that  cost  less  in  the  first  place  but 
must  be  repaired  and  renewed.     Culvert  masonry  is  laid 
in  two  ways,  viz.,  with   mortar   and  without   mortar. 
Rubble  masonry  without  mortar  is  called  dry  nibble 
masonry.     In  most  cases  mortar  is  used  in  the  construc- 
tion of  culverts. 

Box  culverts  are  single-  and  double-box  culverts. 

315.  Cover   Stones. — The   limiting   feature    of   box 
culverts  is  the  cover  stone.     The  usual  specification  is 
that  the  cover  stone  shall  have  a  footing  of  not  less  than 
one  foot  on  each  side  wall  and  be  twelve  inches  thick; 
thus  for  a  4-foot  culvert  the  cover  stone  must  be  at  least 
6  feet  long  and  12  inches  thick.     If  the  stone  be  only  2 
feet  wide,  it  will  contain  12  cubic  feet  and  weigh  about 
1900  pounds.     This  is  a  size  that  is  difficult  to  obtain  and 


CULVERTS.  279 

hard  to  handle;  consequently  a  clear  width  of  four  feet 
is  the  largest  box  culvert  built.  If  a  greater  opening 
is  necessary,  a  double-box  culvert  is  built. 

The  required  thickness  of  the  cover  stone  cannot  be 
computed  theoretically,  on  account  of  the  uncertainty 
about  the  amount  of  load  that  comes  on  it.  The  greatest 
possible  load  that  could  come  on  it  would  be  the  weight 
of  the  prism  of  earth  directly  over  it  plus  a  pressure  from 
the  train ;  but  the  pressure  is  never  as  great  as  the  above, 
unless  there  is  very  little  fill  above  the  cover  stone,  in 
which  case  the  pressure  could  not  be  very  great.  If 
there  is  a  considerable  depth  of  fill  over  the  cover  stone, 
after  it  has  thoroughly  settled  the 
earth  will  act  as  an  arch,  and  there  tl 
may  be  hardly  any  pressure  at  all  on 
the  cover  stone. 

There  should  be  at  least  two  feet  «lTTnTn 

of  fill  above  all  culverts,  particularly  FlG   159 

pipe  and  box  culverts,  to  act  as  a 
cushion  to  prevent  them  from  being  broken  by  shocks 
from  the  engine. 

316.  Single-box    Culverts. — The    smallest    culvert 
that  is  built  of  masonry  has  a  clear  width  of  opening  of 

2  feet  and  a  height  of  3  feet,  as  shown  in  Fig.  159.     The 
size  of  opening  of  single-box  culverts  ranges  from  2  by  3  to 
4  by  6  feet,  the  dimensions  varying  by  even  feet  and  the 
first  dimension  being  the  clear  width. 

The  narrowest  wall  that  can  be  built  substantially  of 
rubble  masonry  is  about  18  inches;  the  side  walls  of  a  2  by 

3  culvert  are  made  2  feet  thick  and  should  extend  at  least 
9  inches  below  the  level  of  the  paving  in  firm  ground  and 


280 


RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


deeper  in  softer  earth.  In  all  cases  it  is  necessary  to  have 
a  firm  masonry  foundation. 

In  3  by  3  and  3  by  4-foot  culverts  the  side  walls  are 
2J  feet  thick,  in  4  by  4  and  4  by  5  culverts  the  side  walls 
are  3  feet  thick,  and  in  4  by  6  culverts  they  are  3J  feet 
thick. 

317.  Double-box  Culverts. — When  a  larger  opening 
than  4  by  6  feet  is  required,  a  double-box  culvert  is 
built  as  in  Fig.  160,  all  three  walls  being  the  same  thick- 
ness. The  thickness  of  the  walls  being  3  feet  for  4  by  4 


f           II           1 

t 
<--  -dM  ? 

*—<!,'• 

—  * 

<  —  i-  —  > 

<  3'—  » 

ILLLLHIA 

rrrrrrrr  i  i 

FIG.  160. 


and  4  by  5  culverts,  and  3 J  feet  for  4  by  6  culverts.  When 
a  larger  opening  than  48  square  feet,  equivalent  to  a  double 
4  by  6  box  culvert,  is  required,  an  arch  culvert  or  a  bridge 
must  be  built.  If  good  cover  stones  are  hard  to  obtain, 
small  arch  culverts  will  be  built  instead  of  large  box 
culverts. 

The  side  walls  are  built  rectangular  in  form,  and  when 
the  ground  is  soft,  they  are  built  with  a  footing  projecting 
from  6  to  9  inches  when,  in  the  judgment  of  the  engineer, 
it  is  necessary. 


CULVERTS. 


281 


In  double-box  culverts  the  middle  wall  is  built  with 
a  pointed  nose,  as  shown  in  the  lower  part  of  Fig.  160; 
this  serves  the  double  purpose  of  allowing  the  water  to 
enter  the  culvert  with  less  contraction  and  also  makes 
it  more  difficult  for  debris  to  lodge  against  it. 

318.  Arch  Culverts. — Arch  culverts  are  seldom  built 
less  than  5  or  6  feet  in  clear  span,  the  arch  being  semi- 
circular, or  as  shown  in  Fig.  161. 

Arches  of  large  span  are  usually  built  with  a  plain 
circular    arc,    three-centered,    or    elliptical.     They    are 
built  in  five  ways,  viz.,  stone  masonry  with  a  stone  ring, 
stone  masonry  with  a  brick  ring, 
all  brick  masonry,  concrete,  and 
reinforced   concrete,  the  latter 
being  used  for  large  spans.    The 
economical  design  of  arch  cul- 
verts  is  an  extensive  subject 
and  will  not  be  given  here. 

319.  Special   Culvert  Con- 
struction.— There  are  a  num- 
ber of  special  features  in  culvert  construction  which 
are  economical  under  the  proper  conditions.     In  many 
localities  good  masonry  stone  can  be  obtained  readily, 
but   suitable   cover   stones  cannot   be  obtained.     Two 
forms  of  special  covers  may  be  used,  viz.,  reinforced  con- 
crete and  old  railroad  rails.     Reinforced  concrete  cover 
slabs  are  made  by  embedding  one  of  the  many  forms  of 
reinforcing  bars  in  the  concrete.     The  bars  are  placed 
about  two  inches  from  the  bottom  of  the  slab  and  at 
right  angles  to  the  length  of  the  culvert,  and  at  a  distance 
apart  which  is  governed  by  the  clear  span,  the  size  of  the 


FIG.  161. 


282  RAILROAD   TRACK   AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

bars,  and  the  thickness  of  the  slab.  The  bars  extend  the 
full  width  of  the  slab,  which  has  a  bearing  of  one  foot 
on  each  side  wall.  The  reinforced  concrete  cover  slabs 
may  be  made  in  two  ways,  viz. ,  they  may  be  made  in  forms, 
allowed  to  set,  and  then  placed  in  position,  or  the  forms 
may  be  arranged  so  that  the  slabs  are  made  in  place. 

Covers  for  culverts  are  made  from  old  railroad  rails 
by  cutting  them  in  lengths  two  feet  greater  than  the  clear 
span  of  the  culvert  and  placing  them  on  their  bases,  side 
by  side  across  the  culvert. 

The  culverts  that  have  been  described  indicate  the 
methods  of  providing  for  the  small  or  minor  openings, 
such  as  are  most  frequently  met  with  along  a  rail- 
road. Larger  openings  are  spanned  by  arches  or 

steel  trusses.  Wherever 
/  V°*  possible,  masonry  should 
|  a  I  /  6  \  be  used,  as  it  ranks  next 

FIG.  162.  to  a  solid  fill  for  perma- 

nency. 

320.  Wing  Walls. — End  walls  of  culverts  may  be  plain, 
as  described  in  If  312,  or  may  have  wing  walls.  Wing 
walls  are  built  in  two  general  forms,  viz.,  at  right  angles 
to  the  face  of  the  culvert,  Fig.  162,  a,  or  flared,  Fig.  162,  b. 

The  face  of  the  culvert  end  wall  when  built  without 
wings  must  be  placed  at  the  point  m,  Fig.  163,  a,  where 
the  slope  of  the  embankment  strikes  the  original 
ground  surface,  in  order  to  prevent  the  material  forming 
the  fill  from  running  around  the  ends  of  the  wall  and  into 
the  culvert.  This  necessitates  the  length  of  the  barrel  of 
the  culvert  to  be  such  that  the  part  I  g  of  the  masonry  is 
exposed.  In  addition,  to  the  extra  length,  the  plain  end 


CULVERTS. 


283 


wall  has  the  further  disadvantage  of  causing  the  most 
contraction  of  the  entering  stream  of  water  and  is  the 
easiest  form  for  debris  to  obstruct. 

The  straight  wing  walls  shown  in  Fig.  162,  a,  may  be 
built  in  two  ways,  viz.,  stepped,  as  shown  by  the  full  lines, 
and  square,  as  shown  by  the  dotted  lines  hi  Fig.  163,  b. 
This  is  a  very  efficient  form  for  small  box  culverts,  the 
principal  advantage  being  that  it  is  difficult  for  debris 
to  obstruct  it.  If  rubbish  strikes  the  outer  ends  of  the 


wings  and  lodges  and  forms  a  dam  as  high  as  the  wall, 
the  water  can  flow  over  the  obstruction  and  drop  into  the 
culvert  through  the  opening  that  will  be  left  at  the  top. 
The  principal  disadvantage  is  that  the  straight  wing  walls 
are  not  as  efficient  as  the  flared  wing  walls  in  preventing 
water  from  entering  the  fill  along  the  outside  of  the 
barrel  of  the  culvert  and  undermining  it. 

The  flared  wing  walls  shown  in  Fig.  162,  b,  are  the  best 
form  and  have  the  most  advantages,  the  only  disadvan- 
tage being  the  cost.  They  are  usually  built  at  an  angle 


284 


RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


of  60  degrees  with  the  center  line  of  track,  and  are  stepped 
as  shown  in  Fig.  163,  b.  They  retain  the  embankment 
better,  obstruct  the  entrance  of  the  water  less,  debris  has 
less  chance  to  lodge,  and  the  water  has  less  chance  to 
undermine  the  barrel  of  the  culvert,  than  hi  any  other 
form  of  wing  wall. 

321.  Apron  Walls. — In  order  to  prevent  water  from 
undermining  the  pavement  and  then  the  whole  culvert, 
apron  walls  are  built.  Apron  walls  are  built  at  the  outer 


SECTION  B-C 


FIG.  164. 


end  of  the  wing  walls,  under  the  wing  walls,  and  across 
the  entire  width  of  the  opening.  An  apron  wall  is  shown 
at  A  in  Fig.  164.  The  depth  a  b  should  not  be  less  than  2 
feet  below  the  top  of  the  paving,  and  the  width  a  c  should 
not  be  less  than  2  feet,  and  these  dimensions  should  be 
made  whatever  amount  may  seem  proper  in  the  judg- 
ment of  the  engineer.  If  the  end,  whig,  and  apron  walls 
are  properly  designed  and  built,  it  will  be  impossible 
for  the  water  to  undermine  the  culvert. 


CULVERTS.  285 

322.  Paving. — The  paving  begins  behind  and  against 
the  apron  wall,  is  about  9  inches  thick,  and  may  be 
laid  dry  or  in  mortar  as  occasion  requires.    The  top  of 
the  paving  should  present  a  fairly  uniform  and  smooth 
surface,  so  that  the  flow  of  water  will  not  be  impeded 
and  that  there  will  be  no  possibility  of  obstructions  form- 
ing.    The  stones  should  be  roughly  of  uniform  size  and 
of  a  thickness  equal  to  the  required  depth  of  the  pave- 
ment.    On  account  of  the  smaller  coefficient  of  friction 
and  the  consequent  greater  discharging  capacity,  it  will 
in  most  cases  be  better  to  smooth  the  surface  of  the  pave- 
ment with  mortar.    When  the  paving  is  laid  in  mortar, 
there  is  no  chance  of  trouble  due  to  water  passing  between 
the  stones  and  softening  the  foundation. 

The  paving  should  slope  in  the  direction  of  the  current ; 
the  steeper  the  slope,  the  greater  the  discharging  capacity 
of  the  culvert;  but  as  masonry  should  be  built  with  its 
foundation  horizontal,  the  pavement  cannot  be  sloped 
much  without  expensive  special  construction.  A  pipe 
culvert  may,  however,  be  laid  on  quite  a  steep  slope — 
possibly  one  foot  in  ten. 

323.  Location  and  Length  of  Culverts.— Culverts  are 
placed  at  the  lowest  part  of  a  fill,  or  hi  such  location  that 
all  water  from  the  drainage  area  can  find  ready  access 
to  it.     The  top  of  the  paving  is  placed  at  the  elevation 
of  the  lowest  point  in  the  profile.    In  Fig.  163, 6,  the  point 
k  in  the  surface  of  the  paving  m  n  is  the  lowest  point  in 
the  profile,  e  is  the  corresponding  point  in  the  grade  line, 
/  is  the  top  of  the  barrel  of  the  culvert,  c  d  is  the  width  of 
roadbed,  and  the  distance  e  f  is  governed  by  the  size  of  the 
culvert  and  is  determined  by  the  above  conditions.    If 


286  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

the  side  slopes  c  g  and  d  h  are  1  on  1 J,  then  the  length 
of  the  barrel  of  the  culvert  is 

gh  =  cd  +  3ef. 

Suppose  a  4  by  4  box  culvert  is  to  be  placed  in  a  fill 
20  feet  high,  then  e  k  =  20  feet,  e  f  =  15  feet,  and  if 
c  d  =  16  feet,  g  h  =  61  feet. 

324.  Culvert  Masonry. — Culvert  masonry  is  divided 
into  two  or  three  classes.  When  divided  into  three 
classes,  they  are  (1)  culvert  masonry,  (2)  paving,  and 
(3)  coping.  In  some  cases  the  coping  is  included  in  the 
general  term  culvert  masonry,  which  leaves  only  two 
classes,  viz.,  culvert  masonry  and  paving,  and  contractors 
bid  on  these  classes,  the  price  per  cubic  yard  being  the 
same  for  all  culverts  of  the  same  general  class. 

In  computing  the  amount  of  masonry  in  a  culvert 
it  is  divided  into  two  parts,  one  part  being  independent  of 
and  the  other  dependent  upon  the  length  of  the  culvert. 
The  amount  of  masonry  in  the  end  walls,  wing  walls,  and 
apron  walls  and  the  corresponding  part  of  the  paving 
for  a  culvert  of  a  certain  size  and  design  is  constant  and 
independent  of  the  length  of  the  culvert.  The  amount 
of  masonry  in  the  barrel  of  the  culvert  depends  directly 
upon  the  length  of  the  culvert,  and  can  be  computed  In 
cubic  yards  per  running  foot.  After  standard  plans 
giving  the  proportions  and  dimensions  of  the  culverts 
have  been  adopted,  the  number  of  cubic  yards  in 
each  part  of  a  culvert  can  be  put  in  tabular  form, 
by  means  of  which  the  cost  of  a  culvert  can  be  quickly 
computed  after  the  length  of  the  barrel,  g  h,  Fig.  163,  b, 
has  been  computed. 


CULVERTS. 


287 


In  the  following  tables  the  wing  walls  are  stepped 
on  a  1  on  li  slope,  make  an  angle  of  30  degrees  with  the 
center  line  of  the  culvert,  or  60  degrees  with  the  center 
line  of  track,  and  nave  the  same  width  as  the  side  walls 
of  the  culvert,  being  the  same  as  given  in  ^  316.  The 
apron  walls  are  two  feet  wide  for  a  2  by  3  culvert,  and  two 
and  one-half  feet  wide  for  all  larger  sizes,  and  three  feet 
deep  in  all  cases.* 

TABLE  XXI. 

SINGLE-BOX  CULVERTS. 


CUBIC  YARDS  OF  MASONRY  IN  WINGS  AND  APRONS 
(BOTH  ENDS). 

2X3 

3X3 

3X4 

4X4 

4X5 

4X6 

Wing  Walls 

3.975 

4.889 
.889 
.713 
10.466 

5.469 
7.292 
1.111 
.780 
14.652 

10.722 
8.703 
1.111 
1.476 
22.012 

10.722 
9.259 
1.333 
1.711 
23.025 

15.417 
10.092 
1.333 
2.550 
29.392 

20.733 
10.925 
1.333 
3.426 
36.417 

Apron  Walls  
Coping 

Paving: 

Totals 

TABLE  XXII. 

SINGLE-BOX  CULVERTS. 


CUBIC  YARDS  OF  MASONRY  PER  RUNNING  FOOT 
OF  CULVERT. 

2X3 

3  X3 

3  X4 

4X4 

4  X5 

4X6 

Side  Walls  

.556 
.148 
.056 
.760 

.694 
.185 
.083 
.962 

1.056 
.185 
.083 
1.324 

1.056 
.222 
.111 
1.389 

1.278 
.222 
.111 
1.611 

1.750 
.222 
.111 
2.083 

Covering     

Paving 

Totals            

*  L.  &  N.  R.  R. 


288 


RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


TABLE  XXIII. 
DOUBLE-BOX  CULVERTS. 


CUBIC  YARDS   OF    MASONRY    IN  WINGS 
AND  APRONS  (BOTH  ENDS). 

4X4 

4X5 

4X6 

Wing  Walls  

11.910 
13.148 

2.888 
3.402 
31.348 

16.855 
13.980 
2.888 
4.780 
38.503 

22.988 
15.091 
3.000 
6.434 
47.513 

Apron  Walls 

Copine 

Paving 

Totals.  . 

TABLE  XXIV. 

DOUBLE-BOX  CULVERTS. 


CUBIC  YARDS   OF   MASONRY    PER   RUN- 
NING FOOT  OF  CULVERT. 


• 

4X4 

4X5 

4X6 

Side  Walls 

1  583 

1.917 

2.625 

Covering 

.444 

.444 

.444 

Paving 

.222 

.222 

.222 

Totals     .  .          

2.249 

2.583 

3.291 

Example:  How  many  cubic  yards  of  masonry  in  a  single  4  by  4 
box  culvert  under  a  20-foot  fill,  width  of  roadbed  16  feet?  As  ex- 
plained in  1[  323,  the  barrel  of  the  culvert  is  61  feet  long;  then,  re- 
ferring to  table  XXII,  there  are  61  X  1.389  =  84.73  cubic  yards  of 
masonry  in  the  barrel  of  the  culvert,  and  from  table  XXI  there  are 
23.025  cubic  yards  in  the  ends,  making  a  total  of  107.75  cubic  yards 
of  masonry  in  the  culvert. 


CHAPTER  IX. 
THE  SUBGRADE. 

ARTICLE  XXVI. 
ROADBED  IN  FILLS. 

325.  The  Subgrade. — The  permanent  way  of  the 
railroad  consists  of  the  foundation,  the  ballast,  and  the 
track.  The  foundation  consists  of  the  cuts,  embank- 
ments, trestles,  bridges,  etc.  The  finished  surface  of  the 
foundation  is  called  the  subgrade,  being  the  surface  upon 
which  the  ballast  is  to  rest.  This  surface,  often  called 
the  roadbed,  consists  of  the  bottom  of  the  cuts  and  the 
tops  of  the  fills,  and  is  finished  so  that  its  plane  is  paral- 
lel to  and  a  certain  distance  below  the  plane  of  the  base 
of  the  rail.  The  cuts  and  fills  are  often  referred  to  as 
the  grading.  The  term  grading  is  more  appropriate  while 
the  work  of  excavating  and  filling  is  going  on.  The  main 
function  of  the  subgrade  is  to  support  the  ballast  which 
supports  the  ties,  rails,  and  trains.  In  order  to  have 
a  good  track  the  subgrade  must  be  of  a  character  that 
will  not  hold  water,  and  be  of  such  shape  that  the 
water  will  run  off  its  surface  readily.  If  the  fills  have 
been  properly  made,  no  stumps,  logs,  etc.,  having  been 
placed  in  the  fills,  and  their  surfaces  properly  shaped, 

19  289 


290  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND 'CONSTRUCTION. 

they  will  always  give  a  good  support  to  the  ballast. 
If  poor  material  has  been  allowed  to  be  placed  in  the  fill 
and  wet  spots  develop,  these  spots  must  be  attended  to 
before  the  ballast  is  placed  on  it.  This  can  often  be  done 
by  dumping  the  proper  material  in  the  place,  the  mixture 
making  a  good  material.  Sometimes  it  is  necessary  to 
excavate  all  the  poor  material  and  replace  it  with  good 
material. 

The  roadbed  must  sustain  not  only  the  weight  brought 
upon  it,  but  also  the  forces  of  nature,  such  as  frost  and 
erosion.  Despite  this  fact,  very  often  very  little  care  or 
forethought  is  given  to  the  formation  of  an  embankment. 
The  material  cheapest  to  handle  is  dumped  or  dragged 


FIG.  165. 

into  the  fill  in  the  quickest  and  easiest  way  possible,  with 
the  result  that  the  embankment  will  settle  or  cause  trouble 
long  after  it  should  have  attained  a  stable  condition. 
326.  Shape  of  Subgrade.— The  stakes  /,  Fig.  165,  on 
the  center  line  are  set  when  the  final  location  is  run; 
before  any  grading  is  done  the  slope  stakes  e  and  g  are 
set  at  right  angles  to  the  center  line  on  tangents  and 
radially  on  curves.  After  an  embankment  has  settled 
it  is  dressed  to  a  true  shape,  the  tops  of  slope  c  and  d  are 
made  sharp  and  true,  and  the  lines  through  these  points 
are  straight  and  parallel  to  the  center  line,  the  slopes  e  c 
and  dg  are  trimmed  to  a  uniform  surface,  and  the  sub- 
grade  c  a  d  is  also  made  uniform  and  even.  When  the 


THE   SUBGRADE.  291 

embankment  is  trimmed  as  described  above,  it  makes  an 
excellent  appearance,  and  the  extra  work  necessary  to 
so  finish  it  is  not  great. 

Very  often  the  top  of  the  subgrade  is  finished  per- 
fectly flat,  but  it  is  a  grave  mistake  to  do  so,  as  water 
falling  upon  it  will  not  run  off,  but  will  soak  in,  causing 
the  ballast  to  settle  into  the  subgrade,  and  in  many 
cases  causing  sections  of  the  embankment  to  slide  down 
the  slope.  The  top  of  the  subgrade  should  always  slope 
away  from  the  center  a,  as  shown  in  Fig.  165.  The 
slope  a  d  should  not  be  less  than  \  inch  in  1  foot,  giving 
a  rise  a  b  of  2  inches  for  an  embankment  16  feet  wide. 
In  some  cases  this  slope  is  made  1  inch  in  1  foot,  making 
a  b  8  inches.  A  sufficient  slope  will  cause  all  rain  water  to 
run  off  immediately,  and  after  a  crust  has  formed  prac- 
tically no  water  will  soak  into  the  embankment. 

327.  Size  of  Embankments. — Different  railroads 
have  different  standard  widths  of  the  top  of  the  em- 
bankments. In  some  cases  a  railroad  will  have  two 
standards,  viz.,  one  for  main  line  and  a  narrower  one 
for  branches.  For  standard  gauge  roads  the  minimum 
width  of  subgrade  for  single  track  is  14  feet  and  ranges 
from  this  by  differences  of  2  feet  up  to  20  feet.  For 
double  track  the  width  ranges  from  26  to  33  feet.  The 
required  width  depends  principally  upon  the  depth  and 
width  of  ballast  and  the  width  of  shoulder  beyond  the 
toe  of  the  ballast  slope. 

The  usual  slope  is  1  on  1J;  rock  may  run  a  little  less, 
and  clay  a  little  more.  Only  in  exceptional  cases  is  a 
fill  made  of  one  uniform  material,  consequently  slope- 
stakes  are  set  for  the  above  slope. 


292  RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

328.  Side-hill  Fill.— When  a  fill  is  made  on  a  steep 
hillside,  care  must  be  taken  to  prevent  the  fill  from 
sliding  both  at  the  time  it  is  made  and  later.  The 
original  surface  should  be  roughened  up  and  all  leaves, 
soil,  etc.,  removed,  so  that  the  new  material  will  thor- 
oughly bond  with  the  original  surface  in  order  to  prevent 
a  distinct  cleavage  between  the  two,  it  being  necessary  in 
some  cases  to  cut  rough  steps,  as  shown  in  Fig.  166.  All 


FIG.  166. 

stumps  should  be  grubbed  out ;  otherwise  after  they  de- 
cay the  embankment  is  liable  to  slip  down.  A  ditch 
should  be  constructed  so  that  there  is  no  possibility  of 
water  reaching  the  toe  of  slope  a  and  soaking  along  the 
old  surface,  thus  causing  the  fill  to  slip.  In  considering 
the  above  precautions  a  little  time  may  be  lost  and  some 
extra  expense  incurred,  but  it  will  be  practically  nothing 
compared  to  the  time  and  money  lost  by  a  slip  after  the 
track  is  laid  and  in  operation. 


THE   SUBGRADE.  293 

ARTICLE  XXVII. 
ROADBED  IN  CUTS. 

329.  Roadbed  in  Cuts. — The  roadbed  in  cuts  is  made 
wider  than  in  fills,  usually  2  feet  wider,  in  order  to  allow 
for  a  ditch  on  each  side.     It  is  more  of  a  problem  to  de- 
sign a  properly  shaped  cross-section  in  cut  than  in  fill. 
If  the  cut  is  short,  the  amount  of  water  that  falls  on  the 
side  slopes  and  the  roadbed  will  be  small  and  will  be 
taken  care  of  by  making  the 

subgrade  two  feet  wider,  as  in 
Fig.  167.  If  the  cut  is  long 
and  deep,  the  ditches  must 
be  made  larger,  particularly  FIG.  157. 

toward  the  lower  end  of  the 

ditch.  If  the  cutting  is  in  rock,  there  will  be  no  trouble, 
provided  it  is  taken  out  deep  enough  to  allow  for  ballast. 
If  the  cutting  is  in  earth,  care  must  be  taken  to  provide 
a  dry  subgrade ;  this  can  be  done  by  the  methods  given 
for  fills  in  •([  325.  These  methods  are  more  liable  to  be 
necessary  in  cuts  than  in  fills.  A  common  source  of 
trouble  in  cuts  is  due  to  springs  which  keep  the  subgrade 
soft  and  in  poor  shape.  Springs  must  be  drained  off  by 
means  of  subdrains,  or  some  method  that  will  prevent 
them  from  interfering  with  the  formation  of  a  dry  and 
firm  roadbed. 

330.  Drainage  in  Tunnels. — In  open  cuts  in  earth 
the  subgrade  is  formed  sloping  from  the  center  the  same 
as  in  fills.     Rock  cuts  are  usually  excavated  with  a  level 


294 


RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


subgrade.  The  roadbed  in  tunnels  may  be  shaped  the 
same  as  in  open  cuts  if  the  volume  of  water  to  handle  is 
small,  but  if  there  is  considerable  water  it  is  too  expen- 
sive to  make  a  wide  tunnel  and  the  drainage  must  be 
provided  for  in  some  other  way.  One  method  is  shown 
in  Fig.  168.  The  subgrade  is  sloped  toward  the  center, 
and  a  trench  is  excavated  as 
shown.  A  tile  drain  of  sufficient 
size  is  laid  in  the  trench  and  sur- 
rounded by  broken  stone  of  ballast 
FIG.  168.  size.  The  size  of  the  trench  and 

the  tile  will  be  governed  by  local 
conditions.  If  the  grade  of  the  tunnel  is  not  as  great  as 
desired  for  the  drain,  the  pipe  can  be  given  a  greater 
slope  by  making  the  trench  deeper  toward  the  lower  end. 
331.  Cross-section  of  Cuts.— The  width  of  roadbed 
in  cuts  varies  from  18  to  24  feet  for  single-track,  and 
from  30  to  36  feet  for  double-track.  In  Fig.  169  is  shown 


FIG.  169. 


the  shape  of  cross-sections  in  cut  in  use  on  some  roads, 
the  dimensions  to  the  right  being  for  double-track,  and 
the  left  for  single-track.  The  main  part  of  the  roadbed 
has  a  slope  of  J  inch  in  one  foot  and  then  a  slope  of  1^ 
inches  in  1  foot  into  the  ditch.  The  side  slopes  of  the  cut 
should  be  the  same  as  the  angle  of  repose  of  the  material. 


THE   SUBGRADE. 


295 


FIG.  170. 


The  usual  earth  slope  in  cut  is  1  on  1,  and  in  solid  rock 
4  on  1.  If  the  earth  is  unstable,  it  is  sometimes  necessary 
to  have  side  slopes  of  1  on  1J  or  even  1  on  2. 

If  the  cut  is  through  both  earth  and  solid  rock,  the 
cross-section  is  as  shown  in  Fig.  170,  the  earth  and  rock 
having  the  usual  slopes,  and 
there  should  be  a  berm  a  b  at      * 
least  4  feet  wide  at  the  top  of 
the  rock,  to  insure  that  no 
earth  will  slide  on  the  track. 
332.  Side-hill  Cuts.— 
When  the  slope  upon  which  a 

side-hill  cut  is  located  is  steep  and  part  of  the  section  is 
in  fill,  great  care  must  be  taken  in  order  to  prevent  the 
fill  from  slipping.  The  same  precautions  are  necessary 
as  in  a  side-hill  fill,  If  328.  In  Fig.  171  is  shown  a  section 
in  cut  and  fill,  the  center  line  stake  being  at  C,  A  being 
the  cut  and  B  the  fill.  In  many  cases  it  is  necessary  to 

place  a  wall  E  of  dry  rub- 
ble or  a  crib-work  in  order 
to  hold  the  fill,  and  it  is 
frequently  found  necessary 
to  shift  the  line  so  that  all 
or  a  greater  part  of  the  sec- 
FIG.  171.  tion  is  in  cut,  particularly 

if  the  line  is  along  a  stream 

and  high  water  is  liable  to  reach  the  toe  of  slope,  both  on 
account  of  the  danger  of  part  of  the  slope  being  washed 
away  and  also  on  account  of  the  fill  being  unstable  when 
wet.  A  slope  of  this  kind  is  usually  protected  by  means 
of  rip-rapping  with  large  pieces  of  rock. 


296  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

333.  Measuring  Cuts  and  Fills. — The  width  of  road- 
bed in  cut  and  in  fill  and  the  corresponding  slopes  are 
specified  in  the  contract.     The  volume  is  computed  by 
taking  the  area  of  the  cross-section  between  the  original 
ground  surface  and  the  specified  shape  of  roadbed.     If 
the  cuts  are  made  wider  than  the  contract  calls  for,  or 
when  a  fill  made  from  borrow  is  made  too  wide,  the  con- 
tractor is  paid  for  the  volume  determined  by  the  specified 
sections,  and  cannot  claim  pay  for  the  extra  work  unless 
he  had  previous  written  instructions  from  the  resident 
engineer. 

Cuts  should  be  taken  out  to  true  lines  and  surfaces  in 
the  same  manner  as  for  fills,  ^  326.  It  is  very  difficult 
to  do  this  except  when  the  cut  is  entirely  in  earth,  but 
an  effort  must  be  made  to  do  the  work  so  as  to  leave  as 
neat  an  appearance  as  possible.  A  contractor  will 
usually  do  neat  work  without  compulsion;  he  must 
take  out  all  the  material,  and  does  not  get  paid  for 
excess  material,  and  it  is  greatly  to  the  advantage 
of  a  contractor  to  be  known  as  one  who  does  good 
work. 

The  final  cross-section  taken  by  the  engineer  is  there- 
fore to  determine  whether  or  not  the  cuts  and  fills  are  as 
large  as  specifications  demand  as  well  as  to  determine 
the  amounts. 

334.  Excess  Cutting. — There  is  one  case  in  which 
the  contractor  is  always  paid  for  excess  material.     If, 
owing  to  natural  conditions,  after  the  cut  has  been  made 
it  is  found  that  a  part  of  a  slope  is  unstable  and  liable  to 
slip  into  the  cut,  this  material  must  be  removed  and  the 
contractor  is  paid  for  it.     Suppose,  for  example,  in  the 


THE    SUBGRADE.  297 

rock  cut  shown  in  Fig.  172,  the  strata  stood  on  end 
and  the  part  B  were  loose  and 
tended  to  slide  along  the  line 
a  b,  then  the  contractor  would 
be  paid  for  removing  the  part 
B.  If,  however,  the  slopes 
were  shattered  by  the  explo- 
sion of  excessive  charges  of 

powder,  then  the  contractor  would  have  to  remove  all 
dangerous  material  at  his  own  expense. 


ARTICLE  XXVIII. 
DITCHES. 

335.  Function  of  Ditches. — Properly  constructed 
and  located  ditches  and  drainage  are  absolutely  essen- 
tial for  the  proper  maintenance  of  roadbed  and  track. 
When  the  roadbed  is  free  from  water,  the  track  can  be 
kept  in  true  surface  and  line  with  much  less  expense. 
The  danger  of  the  upheaval  of  the  track  by  frost  is  also 
avoided.  Proper  ditches  and  drainage  are  economical 
because  they  make  the  track  safer  and  greatly  lessen  the 
cost  of  maintaining  the  track.  Ditches  should  be  con- 
sidered a  part  of  the  original  construction  of  the  road  and 
made  at  the  same  time,  and  in  some  cases  before  the  cuts 
and  fills  are  made.  It  is  more  economical  to  keep  the 
water  out  of  earthwork  than  it  is  to  delay  the  digging  of 
ditches  until  after  the  earthwork  has  been  even  partially 


298  RAILROAD   TRACK   AND    CONSTRUCTION. 

saturated.     It  takes  constant  care  on  the  part  of  the 
track  gang  to  keep  ditches  clear  and  in  good  shape. 

336.  Ditches   in   Cuts. — In  cuts   the   ditches  must 
carry  the  water  that  falls  upon  the  slopes  and  the  road- 
bed.    When  a  cut  is  short  and  the  grade  slopes  both 
ways  from  the  center  of  the  cut,  ditches  shaped  as  in 
Fig.  169  will  be  ample.     The  size  of  a  ditch  depends  upon 
the  area  drained  and  the  material  in  the  cut.     They  must 
be  large  enough  to  carry  off  the  heaviest  rainfall  and  pre- 
vent the  water  in  the  ditch  from  rising  to  the  height  of 
the  lowest  part  of  the  ballast.     If  the  material  in  the  cut 
is  liable  to  erode  easily,  it  will  be  necessary  to  pave  the 
ditch.     If  the  cut  is  long,  a  ditch  several  feet  deep  may  be 
needed  toward  the  end  of  the  cut,  and  it  may  be  neces- 
sary to  protect  it  with  stonework  to  keep  it  from  washing 
out,  and  also  to  deflect  the  water  so  that  it  will  not  affect 
the  adjacent  fill. 

337.  Berm  Ditch  and  Slope  of  Ditches. — It  is  im- 
portant that  no  more  water  should  run  down  a  slope,  than 
actually  falls  on  the  slope.     In  order  to  prevent  this  it 
is  customary  to  dig  a  berm  ditch  on  the  higher  side  of  the 
cut,  as  shown  at  A  in  Fig.  167.     The  berm  ditch  inter- 
cepts all  water  coming  down  the  hillside  and  prevents  it 
from  running  down  the  slope  of  the  cut.     If  this  water 
were  allowed  to  run  down  the  slope  of  the  cut,  it  would 
certainly  wash  gullies  in  the  slope  and  obstruct  the  track 
ditches  with  the  eroded  material,  and  might  even  wash 
material  on  the  track,  necessitating  constant  vigilance 
to  prevent  wrecking  a  train.     There  would  also  be  danger 
of  landslides. 

338.  Ditches    along    Fills. — Ditches   are   necessary 


THE    SUBGRADE.  299 

along  fills,  particularly  to  take  care  of  the  water  from 
the  adjacent  cut.  On  the  upstream  side  of  fills  there  is 
a  tendency  of  the  water  to  run  toward  the  fill  and  strike 
the  bottom  of  the  fill  and  then  run  along  the  toe  of  slope 
until  it  reaches  the  culvert.  This  tendency  should  be 
prevented  by  a  suitable  ditch,  otherwise  the  water  will 
have  a  tendency  to  seep  under  the  embankment  along 
the  original  ground  surface,  which  may  cause  trouble, 
and,  in  addition,  if  the  volume  of  water  is  considerable,  it 
will  wash  the  toe  of  slope.  Suitable  ditches  should 
therefore  be  constructed  parallel  to  the  toe  of  slope,  leav- 
ing a  berm  of  sufficient  width,  and  running  from  the  cut 
on  each  end  of  the  fill  to  the  culvert  or  other  opening 
through  the  fill. 


ARTICLE  XXIX. 
FENCES. 

339.  Necessity  for  Fences. — State  laws  or  the  State 
Railroad  Commission  usually  require  the  railroad  com- 
pany to  build  and  maintain  the  right-of-way  fences. 
Failure  to  comply  with  this  law  makes  the  company 
liable  to  heavy  fines,  for  the  market  value  of  stock  killed, 
or  double  the  market  value,  etc.  In  most  of  the  States 
the  maintaining  of  a  legal  fence  and  cattle  guards  in  good 
condition  releases  the  railroad  company  from  payment 
for  damage  to  stock,  as  the  damage  is  then  attributed  to 
the  negligence  of  the  owner  of  the  animal.  The  payment 
of  damages  to  the  owner  for  cattle  killed  is  not  the  only 


300 


RAILROAD  TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


expense  saved  by  good  fences.  In  many  cases  derail- 
ments are  caused  by  striking  cattle,  and  the  price  of  the 
cattle  is  very  small  compared  to  the  loss  due  to  possible 
injury  to  passengers  or  crew,  and  damage  to  track  and 
rolling  stock. 

340.  Post  and  Rail  Fence. — In  the  majority  of  cases 
a  fence  4^  feet  high  is  required.  In  regions  where  good 
chestnut  timber  is  plentiful  probably  the  best  and  most 
suitable  fence  is  the  post-and-rail  fence.  The  posts  are 
made  by  taking  a  round  log  about  8  inches  in  diameter 

and  hewing  off  two  faces 
as  shown  in  Fig.  173,  and 
then  cutting  as  many  holes 
through  it  as  there  are  rails, 
usually  four.  These  holes 
are  about  5  inches  high  and 
2  inches  wide.  The  rails 
consists  of  round  timbers  4 
inches  in  diameter,  or  half 
of  a  large  timber,  and  9  feet 

long.  The  ends  of  the  rails  are  sharpened  to  a  long,  wedge- 
shaped  point,  and  are  tightly  wedged  into  the  post,  as 
shown,  before  the  next  post  is  rammed  into  place.  The 
distance  between  posts  is  8  feet,  and  this  length  of  fence 
between  posts  is  called  a  panel.  This  style  of  fence  is  the 
most  effective  for  turning  stock  that  there  is,  especially 
if  five  rails  are  used,  and  the  two  lower  rails  are  placed 
near  together. 

The  posts  are  set  by  digging  a  hole  not  less  than  2  feet 
deep  and  about  1  foot  in  diameter ;  the  post  is  placed  hi 
it,  the  rails  fitted  in,  and  then  the  hole  is  filled  up  with 


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THE    SUBGRADE. 


301 


dirt  and  thoroughly  rammed  around  the  post.  From 
the  nature  of  this  fence  there  is  less  liability  of  its  getting 
out  of  shape  than  of  any  other  fence  that  is  built.  A 
fence  built  with  chestnut  rails  and  locust  posts  will  last 
twenty  and  possibly  thirty  years.  The  decay  of  the  part 
of  the  post  in  the  ground  occurs  first,  that  being  the  most 
vulnerable  part  of  the  fence.  The  principal  source  of 
danger  to  be  guarded  against  with  this  class  of  fence  is 
fire. 
341.  Board  Fence. — The  fence  that  comes  nearest 


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FIG.  174. 

to  the  post  and  rail  fence  is  shown  in  Fig.  174.  This 
fence  consists  of  boards  one  inch  thick,  six  inches  wide, 
and  sixteen  feet  long,  nailed  to  posts.  The  posts  are 
square  or  round,  with  one  side  hewed  flat  for  a  distance 
of  five  feet,  are  eight  feet  long,  and  are  set  eight  feet  apart 
between  centers.  The  boards  are  placed  with  ends  join- 
ing on  alternate  posts,  as  shown  in  Fig.  174,  which  makes 
a  stronger  structure  than  if  all  the  boards  joined  ends  on 
the  same  post.  The  board  fence  requires  considerably 
less  timber  than  the  post  and  rail  fence,  both  the  longi- 
tudinal pieces  and  the  posts  being  smaller  in  the  former ; 


302  RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 

the  whole  structure  is  lighter  and  the  board  fence  is  more 
liable  to  be  broken.  While  it  gives  a  better  nailing 
surface  to  hew  the  front  face  of  the  post  flat,  very  often 
the  only  requirement  is  that  the  posts  shall  not  be  less 
than  six  inches  hi  diameter  and  that  all  bark  shall  be 
removed.  The  best  woods  for  posts  are  locust,  cedar, 
white  oak,  and  chestnut. 

The  main  advantages  of  post  and  rail  and  board 
fences  are  that  they  present  an  efficient  barrier  to  stock 
and  the  stock  cannot  injure  themselves  on  them.  Since 
the  requirements  are  that  the  upper  part  of  the  top  rail 
shall  be  4  feet  6  inches  from  the  ground,  four  rails  or 
boards  six  inches  wide  leave  only  2  feet  6  inches  for  the 
four  spaces,  or  7J  inches  clearance  between  rails,  and  a 
five-rail  fence  has  spaces  that  no  domestic  animal  can 
crawl  through. 

342.  Wire  Fences. — On  account  of  the  increased  cost 
of  timber  and  lumber,  wire  fences  are  coming  into  general 
use.  The  cheapest  form  of  wire  fence  consists  of  four 
or  more  strands  of  either  plain  or  barbed  wire  fastened 
to  posts  eight  or  more  feet  apart,  by  means  of  small 
staples  made  for  the  purpose,  the  top  wire  being  4  feet 
6  inches  from  the  ground.  Wire  fences  have  both  ad- 
vantages and  disadvantages  as  compared  to  post  and 
rail  or  board  fences.  The  two  principal  advantages  are 
cheapness  and  ease  of  construction,  and  the  ease  with 
which  the  ground  near  them  can  be  kept  clear  of  weeds 
and  bushes.  As  the  ground  cannot  be  cultivated  nearer 
than  two  or  three  feet  from  the  fence,  it  takes  continual 
work  and  watchfulness  on  the  part  of  both  the  adjacent 
owner  and  the  railroad  company  to  prevent  weeds  and 


THE   SUBGRADE.  303 

bushes  from  growing  along  the  fence.  With  a  wire 
fence  this  growth  cannot  only  be  cut  with  greater  ease, 
but  if  care  is  exercised  around  the  post,  the  rubbish  can 
be  burned  without  any  injury  to  the  fence,  which  is  im- 
possible with  a  fence  built  entirely  of  wood.  The  burn- 
ing also  discourages  future  growth. 

The  disadvantages  are  that  the  smaller  domestic 
animals,  such  as  sheep  and  hogs,  can  force  their  way 
through  it,  and  horses  and  cattle  are  liable  to  run  into  it 
and  injure  themselves,  particularly  when  barbed  wire 
is  used.  This  latter  objection  has  caused  a  board  to 
be  used  for  the  top  of  the  fence.  This  may  be  simply 
a  6  by  1-inch  board  nailed  on  like  the  top  board  in  Fig. 
174.  A  better  device,  which  takes  very  little  more 
lumber  and  is  much  stronger,  is  to  take  two  strips  4  by  1 
inch  and  nail  them  together  T  shape. 

343.  Patent  Wire  Fences. — As  stated  in  the  previous 
paragraph,  it  is  almost  impossible  to  build  a  fence  with 
straight  strands  of  wire  stretched  from  post  to  post  that 
will  turn  the  smaller  animals.  This  has  led  to  the  patenting 
of  innumerable  devices  and  kinds  of  wire  fences.  These 
patents  vary  from  some  method  of  connecting  the  straight 
strands  by  means  of  vertical  strips  to  a  wire  netting. 
One  of  the  simplest  devices  is  to  take  small  strips  of  wood, 
about  1J  by  J  inch,  or  plastering  lath,  about  1  \  by  \  inch, 
and  weave  them  through  the  wires,  as  shown  in  Fig.  175, 
stapling  them  fast.  This  prevents  the  animal  from 
separating  the  wires  and  squeezing  through.  Even 
when  the  straight  strands  are  stretched  very  tight, 
it  is  possible  in  the  space  between  two  posts  (8  feet 
apart)  to  pull  one  wire  up  and  the  adjacent  wire 


304 


RAILROAD   TRACK  AND   CONSTRUCTION. 


down  until  the  space  between  them  is  materially  in- 
creased. 

It  is  not  worth  while  to  describe  any  of  the  patented 
types  of  fences,  as  a  description  of  one  or  more  of  them 
can  be  found  in  the  advertisements  of  almost  any  engi- 
neering paper. 

344.  Gates. — On  a  trunk  line  carrying  heavy  traffic 
probably  under  no  circumstance  will  an  opening  of  any 
kind  be  allowed  in  the  right-of-way  fence,  but  along  rail- 
roads of  less  importance  there  are  still  grade  farm  cross- 


u 


i 


FIG.  175. 


ings  which  necessitate  a  gate  on  each  side  of  the  rail- 
road. While  there  are  probably  as  many  styles  of  gates 
as  there  are  types  of  fences,  gates  may  be  divided  into 
two  general  types,  viz.,  swinging  and  sliding  gates. 
A  sliding  gate  is  shown  in  Fig.  176.  The  gate  is  pushed 
to  the  right,  sliding  on  the  cleats  a  a  until  the  vertical 
piece  b  b  at  the  center  of  the  gate  strikes  the  cleats  a  a. 
The  gate  then  nearly  balances  and  is  readily  swung  to  a 
position  at  right  angles  to  the  direction  of  the  fence. 
When  closed,  the  ends  of  the  horizontal  boards  of  the  gate 


THE   SUBGRADE. 


305 


project  over  the  cleats  d  d  and  may  be  fastened  by  some 
simple  contrivance. 

345.  Post  Braces. — One  of  the  most  important  points 
in  connection  with  wire  fence  construction  is  to  keep  the 


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end  posts  in  a  vertical  position  and  prevent  them  from 
being  pulled  over  in  the  direction  in  which  the  wires  tend 
to  pull  them.  No  post  will  withstand  the  pull  of  the 
wires  unless  it  is  securely  braced.  One  of  the  simplest 
forms  of  brace  is  shown  at  e  e,  Fig.  176.  This  brace  e  e 


should  be  not  less  than  3  by  4  inches  in  cross-section, 
and  should  be  both  notched  into  the  posts  and  securely 
nailed  to  the  posts.  When  there  is  a  long  piece  of  con- 
tinuous fence,  at  intervals  a  post  should  be  braced  both 
ways  (Fig.  177),  as  it  costs  very  little  more  and  adds 
20 


306  RAILROAD   TRACK   AND    CONSTRUCTION. 

greatly  to  the  security  of  the  fence,  and  also  allows  the 
wires  to  be  stretched  in  sections. 

346.  Setting  Fence  Posts. — The  depth  to  which  posts 
are  planted,  or  set  in  the  ground,  depends  almost  entirely 
upon  the  kind  of  post.     The  post  for  the  post  and  rail 
fence  described  in  If  340  extends  into  the  ground  2  feet. 
This  amount  is  ample,  both  on  account  of  the  bottom  of 
the  post  being  much  larger  in  cross-section  than  the  top, 
and  also,  from  the  nature  of  the  fence,  much  less  strain 
is  brought  upon  the  post  than  on  a  wire  fence  post. 
While  it  is  poor  economy  to  use  posts  that  are  too  light, 
wire  fence  posts  are  often  as  small  as  4  inches  in  diameter 
at  the  top  and  very  little  larger  at  the  bottom;   this,  in 
addition  to  the  greater  strain  brought  upon  them,  requires 
that  wire  fence  posts  should  be  planted  deeper  than  2 
feet — probably  not  less  than  2J  feet.     The  manner  of 
planting  them  will  depend  upon  the  nature  of  the  soil 
in  which  they  are  placed.     If  the  ground  is  rocky,  it  will 
be  necessary  to  excavate  the  hole  the  full  depth,  but  if 
there  is  no  rock,  the  bottom  (always  the  larger  end) 
may  be  pointed  and  driven  the  additional  distance  by 
means  of  heavy  wooden  mauls,  after  the  hole  has  been 
dug  H  or  2  feet  deep. 

347.  Iron  Fence  Posts. — The  best  woods  for  fence 
posts  are  locust,  cedar,  white  oak,  and  chestnut,  in  the 
order  named.     Posts  fail  by  rotting  off  near  the  ground, 
due  to  alternate  wetting  and  drying.     All  of  the  desirable 
woods  for  posts  mentioned  are  becoming  very  scarce,  and 
iron  posts  are  coming  into  use  for  wire  fences.     On  ac- 
count of  the  small  diameter  of  iron  posts — 2  or  2J  inches 
—it  is  difficult  to  make  them  stand  perpendicularly  and 


THE   SUBGRADE.  307 

hold  firmly.     There  are  many  devices  for  securing  this. 

A  substantial  post  of  very  simple  construction  is  shown 

in  Fig.  178.     It  consists  of  a  piece  of  ordinary  2  or  2J 

inch  pipe,  7  feet  long,  set  in  a  concrete  base.     A  box  or 

nail  keg  is  buried  at  the  proper  point,  the  pipe 

is  placed  in  the  center  of   it,  and  concrete 

rammed  around  it.     Holes  by  means  of  which 

the  wires  may  be  attached  are  drilled  in  the 

post.     This  makes  a  very  substantial  post, 

and   if    kept   painted,  will  last  indefinitely. 

If  the  ground  is  firm,  the  concrete  may  be 

placed   in  a  hole  of   the  right  dimensions, 

and  no  box  or  keg  need  be  used.     These  posts 

can  be  braced  by  placing  guy  wires  instead  of  the  struts 

in  Fig.  177. 


ARTICLE  XXX. 

CATTLE  GUARDS  AND  PASSES;  ROAD 
CROSSINGS. 

348.  Location  of  Cattle  Guards. — Where  there  is 
a  permanent  break  in  the  right-of-way  fence,  as  at  a 
highway  grade  crossing,  cattle  guards  are  necessary. 
A  stock  guard,  commonly  called  cattle  guard,  is  a  barrier 
in  the  track  for  the  purpose  of  preventing  the  passage 
of  stock  along  the  track.  Cattle  guards  are  placed  at 
each  side  of  a  highway  grade  crossing  to  prevent  stock 
from  straying  along  the  track  while  being  driven  over  it ; 
they  are  also  placed  so  as  to  guard  the  approaches  to 


308  RAILROAD    TRACK   AND    CONSTRUCTION. 

bridges,  tunnels,  and  deep  cuts.  The  important  railroads 
are  rapidly  eliminating  grade  crossings  and  there  are 
correspondingly  fewer  cattle  guards  necessary. 

349.  Pit  Guards. — Cattle  guards  are  of  two  general 
classes,  viz.,  pit  guards  and  surface  guards.     Pit  guards 
are  built  open, or  covered.     Practically  there  is  only  one 
barrier  that  will  stop  a  frightened  animal,  and  that  is  an 
open  pit  so  wide  that  the  animal  cannot  jump  across  it, 
and  so  deep  that  it  cannot  get  out  if  it  falls  into  the  pit. 
An  open  pit  cattle  guard  consists  of  a  pit  several  feet 
deep  and  8  or  10  feet  wide,  extending  clear  across  the 
track,  the  ties  being  supported  by  stringers  resting  upon 
masonry  walls,  the  whole  arrangement  resembling  a  short 
girder  bridge.     While  efficient  as  a  cattle  guard,  this 
arrangement   has   several   serious   objections.     It   is   a 
serious  source  of  danger  in  case  of  derailment,  it  is  danger- 
ous for  track-walkers  and  watchmen  who  are  compelled 
to  walk  along  the  track  at  night,  and  it  also  breaks  the 
continuity  of  the  roadbed,  thus  adding  to  the  expense  of 
maintaining  the  track.     In  modern  railroading  they  are 
out  of  date  and  are  only  used  in  extreme  cases. 

350.  Surface    Guards. — Surface    cattle    guards    are 
of  two  kinds,  viz.,  those  intended  to  present  insecure 
footing  to  animals  and  those  with  projecting  points  in- 
tended to  inflict  pain.     The  first  kind  usually  consists 
of  strips  of  wood  or  metal  spiked  to  the  ties,  either 
parallel  or  at  right  angles  to  the  rails,  both  inside  and 
outside  the  rails,  and  presenting  upturned  corners  or 
edges.     The  ballast  is  usually  removed  as  far  as  the 
bottom  of  the  ties  to  aid  in  the  intimidation  of  the  stock. 
These  strips  or  slats  should  be  so  spaced  apart  that  there 


THE   SUBGRADE.  309 

will  either  not  be  room  for  the  hoofs  of  cattle  or  horses 
to  slip  between  them,  or  else  at  such  distance  apart  that 
their  hoofs  will  not  be  caught  and  held  fast  in  case  they  do 
slip  between  the  slats. 

A  guard  of  the  above  description  is  shown  in  Fig.  179. 
The  slats  consist  of  a  triangular  piece  of  wood  formed  by 
sawing  a  piece  of  4  by  4-inch  timber  as  shown  in  Fig. 
179,  A.  These  are  nailed  to  special  ties  8  by  8  inches 
and  12  feet  long,  as  shown  in.Fig.  179,  B. 

The  form  of  surface  guard  designed  to  inflict  pain  is 
usually  made  of  iron  or  steel  slats,  the  upper  edges  of 
which  are  formed  into  saw  teeth,  or  studded  with  spike- 
like  projections,  fastened  to  the  ties  in  a  similar  manner 


t 


FIG.  179. 

to  that  shown  in  Fig.  179.  When  either  of  these  forms 
run  at  right  angles  to  the  rails,  they  are  nailed  or  fastened 
to  strips  which  run  parallel  to  the  rails.  As  a  usual  thing 
the  slats  run  parallel  to  the  rails.  A  guard  formed  of 
slats  running  at  right  angles  to  the  rails  is  known  as  the 
gridiron  pattern. 

351.  Relative  Merits  of  Surface  Guards. — Guards 
with  wooden  slats  are  most  generally  used.  They  are 
cheaper  in  first  cost  than  metal  guards,  and  are  more 
cheaply  and  easily  repaired  when  torn  out  or  damaged, 
but  this  form  is  liable  to  be  destroyed  by  fire.  The 
objection  to  a  device  that  causes  pain  is  that  it  is  just 
as  severe  on  men  who  stumble  on  it  in  the  dark  as  it  is 


310 


RAILROAD   TRACK   AND    CONSTRUCTION. 


upon  beasts.  There  is  no  form  of  cattle  guard  that  gives 
entire  satisfaction.  In  no  case  must  the  guard  be  of 
such  form  that  man  or  beast  can  get  a  foot  caught  in  it. 
In  all  the  preceding  discussion  only  the  part  of  the 
cattle  guard  that  is  placed  in  the  track  has  been  described. 
In  all  cases  a  cross  fence  is  built  extending  from  the 
right-of-way  fence  to  a  point  as  close  to  the  track  as  the 
necessary  clearance  of  the  train  will  allow.  The  plan 
and  elevation  of  the  cross  fence  are  shown  in  Fig.  180. 


FIG.  180. 

This  arrangement  leaves  only  the  track  apparently 
open,  and  if  the  track  guard  is  efficient,  stock  will  not 
be  able  to  pass  this  point. 

352.  Cattle  Passes. — Cattle  passes  are  for  the  purpose 
of  allowing  stock  to  pass  from  one  side  of  the  railroad  to 
the  other  without  getting  on  the  track.  When  a  rail- 
road crosses  a  farm,  cutting  it  into  two  parts,  and  buys 
only  the  necessary  width  of  right-of-way,  the  railroad 
is  compelled  to  provide  some  way  in  which  stock  may 
cross.  Leaving  out  grade  farm  crossings  as  out  of  date, 


THE   SUBGRADE.  311 

this  is  usually  accomplished  by  means  of  a  cattle  pass. 
Cattle  passes  may  consist  of  a  girder  bridge  with  the 
opening  beneath  it  barely  wide  and  deep  enough  for 
stock  to  pass  through,  or  it  may  be  large  enough  to 
drive  a  team  through.  These  are  subject  to  all  the 
objections  mentioned  in  If  349  about  pit  cattle  guards. 
In  most  cases  the  railroad  prefers  to  buy  the  entire 
farm,  and  sell  the  parts  it  does  not  want  in  such  a  manner 
that  no  right  to  a  cattle  pass  can  be  claimed.  If  abso- 
lutely necessary  to  build  a  cattle  pass  and  the  height 
of  embankment  is  sufficient,  it  will  be  better  to  build  an 
arch  culvert  of  suitable  size. 

353-  Overhead  Crossings. — On  first-class  railroads 
all  highways  crossing  the  railroad  cross  overhead  or  be- 
low the  grade.  No  grade  crossings  should  be  put  in  un- 
less absolutely  necessary,  and  in  many  cases  the  rail- 
road, municipality,  or  both  jointly  go  to  great  expense 
to  eliminate  grade  crossings.  Grade  crossings  are  a  con- 
stant source  of  danger  and  expense.  Many  people  are 
killed  and  injured,  animals  killed,  and  vehicles  demol- 
ished every  year  in  grade-crossing  accidents.  The 
railroad  is  compelled  by  law  to  maintain  crossing  gates 
and  to  pay  the  salary  of  a  watchman  to  operate  them, 
and  despite  these  precautions,  many  accidents  happen. 

An  overhead  crossing  consists  of  a  bridge  crossing 
the  track,  with  a  clearance  of  at  least  20  feet  between  the 
top  of  rail  and  the  lowest  part  of  the  clear  span  of  the 
bridge.  If  the  road  crosses  the  railroad  at  a  cut,  the  cost 
of  the  bridge  is  the  principal  expense.  The  general 
arrangement  is  as  shown  in  Fig.  181.  The  bridge  is 
supported  on  two  piers  and  the  two  abutments.  The 


312 


RAILROAD   TRACK  AND    CONSTRUCTION. 


distance  between  the  gauge  of  the  outside  rail  and  the 
closest  side  of  the  adjacent  pier  should  not  be  less  than 
4  feet,  and  is  usually  more,  as  the  ditch  should  pass 
between  the  piers  and  the  track.  When  the  road  does 
not  cross  at  a  cut  and  cannot  be  conveniently  diverted 
so  that  it  will  cross  at  a  cut,  it  is  necessary  to  build 
artificial  approaches,  usually  of  earth.  The  slope  of  the 
road  on  the  approaches  should  not  be  greater  than 
ten  feet  to  the  hundred. 

354.  Under-grade  Crossings. — In  many  cases  it  is 
found  more  convenient  to  build  the  road  under  the  rail- 


FIG.  181. 

road.  When  there  is  plenty  of  headroom,  the  highway 
may  pass  through  an  arch,  but  in  most  cases  there  is  not 
sufficient  height  for  an  arch,  and  a  bridge  is  built  to  carry 
the  railroad.  In  many  cases  it  is  necessary  to  lower  the 
highway  in  order  to  get  sufficient  headroom  under  the 
railroad.  This  grading  is  commenced  at  such  a  distance 
from  the  railroad  that  the  grade  of  the  highway  will  not 
be  too  steep.  When  the  highway  slopes  downward 
toward  the  railroad  from  both  sides,  it  is  often  quite  a 
problem  to  drain  the  crossing  properly,  as  it  is  lower  than 
any  of  the  surrounding  ground  surface. 


THE    SUBGRADE.  313 

An  overhead  crossing  does  not  interfere  with  the  track, 
but  it  is  quite  expensive  to  lay  an  additional  track  unless 
the  bridge  was  designed  for  the  additional  track  in  the 
first  place.  If  the  original  bridge  was  not  designed  with 
a  length  sufficient  to  allow  the  additional  track  to  pass 
under  it,  it  will  be  necessary  to  build  an  entire  new  bridge 
when  the  new  track  is  laid. 

The  ideal  highway  crossing  is  where  the  highway  passes 
through  a  masonry  arch  under  the  railroad.  In  this 
case  the  track  is  not  interfered  with,  and  additional 
tracks  can  be  laid  by  extending  the  arch.  An  ordinary 
under-grade  crossing  has  a  bridge  in  the  track  with  all 
the  disadvantages  of  bridges  as  compared  to  a  solid 
and  continuous  roadbed.  It  has  the  advantage,  how- 
ever, of  allowing  additional  tracks  to  be  laid  by  simply 
extending  the  abutments  and  placing  additional  girders 
or  trusses. 


INDEX. 


A. 

Annual  cost  of  ties,  40. 
of  treated  ties,  41. 
Apron  walls,  284. 
Arch  culverts,  281. 
Area  of  watershed,  268. 

of  waterwray,  269. 
Ash-pits,  131. 
Axes,  164. 


B. 

Ballast,  broken  stone,  8. 

advantages  of,  8. 

cross-section,  10,  20. 

depth  of,  10. 

dressing  slopes,  11. 

relative  value,  12. 

size  of  stone,  9. 

stone  for,  12. 
distributing,  188. 
economy  of,  21. 
function  of,  7. 
laying,  21. 
materials  for,  8. 

burnt  clay,  19. 

cinder,  16. 
volcanic,  18. 

culm,  18. 

decomposed  rock,  18. 

dirt,  19. 

gravel,  14. 

oyster  shells,  18. 

sand,  17. 

slag,  13. 

stone,  8. 

washed  gravel,  15. 
Blasting,  233~ 


Bolts,  78. 
Borrow,  221. 
Borrow-pits,  221. 
Box  culverts,  277. 
Bridge  warning,  197. 

watchman,  199. 
Broken  stone  ballast,  8. 
Brush  hooks,  169. 
Bumpers,  193. 
Burnettizing,  37. 


C. 
Cattle  guards,  307. 

pit,  308. 

surface,  308. 
Cattle  passes,  310. 
Center  line  markers,  179. 
Claw  bars,  156. 
Clearances,  196. 
Coal  bins,  131. 
Corner  stones,  179. 
Creosoting,  37. 
Crossovers,  definition,  108. 

theory  of,  109. 
Cross-sections,  209. 

ballast,  10,  20. 

notes,  209. 
Cross-ties,  annual  cost,  40. 

data,  25,  26. 

decay  of,  28. 

distributing,  186. 

function  of,  22. 

hewed,  30. 

inspection,  32. 

life  of,  27. 

metal,  42. 

Carnegie  steel,  43, 
economy  of,  47. 


315 


316 


INDEX. 


Cross-ties,  metal,  Hartford,  45. 

steel,  in  U.  S.,  42. 

York  process,  45. 
planting  trees  for,  33. 
preservation,  34. 

annual  cost,  41. 

Blythe  process,  37. 

Burnettizing,  36. 

Columbia  process,  38. 

creosoting,  37. 

economy  of,  40. 

kyanizing,  36. 

vulcanizing,  36. 
reinforced  concrete,  47. 

economy  of,  49. 
sawed,  30. 
seasoning,  29. 
size  of,  31. 
spacing,  32. 
wood  for,  26. 

Culverts,  apron  walls,  284. 
arch,  281. 
cover  stones,  278. 
double-box,  280. 
end  walls,  275. 
iron  pipe,  275. 
length  of,  285. 
location  of,  285. 
masonry,  286. 
paving,  285. 
pipe,  273. 
single-box,  279. 
special,  281. 
stone,  278. 
tables,  287. 
tile  pipe,  274. 
timber  box,  277. 
wing  walls,  282. 
Cut,  see  excavation,  215. 

D. 

Dimension  book,  196. 
Ditches,  along  fills,  298. 

berm,  298. 

function  of,  297. 

in  cuts,  298. 

in  tunnels,  294. 

slope  of,  298. 
Divisions  of  a  railroad,  144. 


Divisions,  posts,  175. 

Drainage  area,  of  watershed,  268. 

of  waterway,  269. 

Myer's  formula,  270. 

practical  methods,  272. 

Talbot's  formula,  270. 
items  governing,  267. 
rate  of  rainfall,  267. 
shape  of  watershed,  269. 
slope  of  watershed,  269. 
soil  and  vegetation,  269. 
storm  flow,  272. 
tunnels,  293. 

E. 
Embankments,  220. 

borrow,  221. 

borrow-pits,  221. 

measuring,  296. 

overhaul,  224. 

sections,  224. 

shrinkage,  222. 

side-hill,  292. 

size  of,  291. 

swell,  223. 

waste,  221. 
Engineer  corps,  preliminary,  206. 

location,  206. 

resident,  210. 
Excavation,  blasting,  233.    • 

classification,  216. 

cost  of,.  231. 

cross-sections,  294. 

definition,  215. 

drilling,  234. 

drills,  235. 

dynamite,  233. 

earth,  217. 

excess,  296. 

hardpan,  218. 

hauling,  237. 

loading,  237. 

loading  and  fixing,  235. 

loosening,  232. 

loose  rock,  218. 

measuring,  296. 

powder,  233. 

roadbed  in,  293. 

side-hill,  295. 


INDEX. 


317 


Excavation,  solid  rock,  219. 
spreading,  237. 

F. 

Fence-posts,  braces,  305. 

iron,  306. 

setting,  306. 
Fences,  board,  301. 

necessity  for,  299. 

patent  wire,  303. 

post  and  rail,  300. 

wire,  302. 

Fill,  see  embankment,  220. 
Force  account,  216. 
Frogs,  bolted,  100. 

crossing,  105. 

ordering,  107. 

movable-point,  107. 

riveted,  102. 

spring,  103. 

stiff,  100. 

yoked,  101. 


G. 

Gates,  fence,  304. 

Grade  crossing,  highway,  180. 

railroad,  106. 
Gravel  ballast,  14. 

bank,  14. 

stream,  14. 

washed,  15. 
Guard  rails,  115,  257. 

H. 

Hammers,  napping,  155. 
sledge,  155. 
spiking,  153. 
Headblocks,  117. 
Highway  crossings,  grade,  180. 
overhead,  311. 
under-grade,  312. 


I. 

Inspection,  by  supervisor,  201. 
general,  205. 
of  cross-ties,  32. 


Inspection  of  rails,  63. 
of  track,  203. 

J. 
Joints,  6ee  rail  joints,  68. 

K. 
Kyanizing,  36. 

L. 

Level  boards,  169. 
Lining  bars,  157. 
Locomotives,  4. 
history  of,  2. 

M. 

Maintenance  of  way,  144. 

Mass  diagram,  application,  230. 

plotting,  227. 

overhaul  from,  229. 
Mile  posts,  175. 
Monthly  estimates,  213. 


Nut-locks,  80. 


N. 


O. 


Overhead  road  crossings,  311. 
Overhaul,  224. 

computing,  225-230. 

P. 

Permanent  way,  definition,  1. 
Pick,  clay,  160. 
tamping,  160. 
Pinch  bar,  158. 
Point  switch,  92. 
Post-hole  digger,  172. 
Progress  profile,  214. 


R. 


Rail  braces,  90. 
fork,  172. 
tongs,  16$. 


318 


INDEX. 


Rail  joints,  68. 
bolts,  78. 
bolt-holes,  81. 
bonded,  72. 
Bonzano,  76. 
bridge,  76. 
broken,  70. 
continuous,  77. 
definition,  68. 
insulated,  72. 
M.  W.  100  %,  76. 
nut-locks,  80. 
permanent,  77. 
shape  of  ends,  69. 

lap,  70. 

Say  re,  or  miter,  69. 
splice-bars,  74. 

angle,  74. 

fish  plates,  74. 
square,  70. 
supported,  71. 
suspended,  71. 
Railroad,  definition,  1. 
first  in  U.  S.,  3. 
history  of,  2. 
miles  in  U.  S.,  5. 
Rails,  bridge,  54. 

chemical  composition,  58. 
development  of,  53. 
guard,  115. 
handling,  187. 
inspection  and  tests,  63. 

branding,  67. 

drilling,  66. 

drop  test,  64. 

section,  65. 

straightening,  66. 

weight,  65. 
length  of,  63. 
.     life  of,  67. 

manufacture,  57. 

No.  2,  66. 

privileges  of  inspectors,  67. 

shape  of  ends,  69. 

shape  of  section,  59. 

A.  S.  C.  E.,  60. 

P.  R.  R.,  61. 
space  between  ends,  82. 
Stevens,  55. 
weight  of,  62. 


Railway,  definition,  1. 
Referencing,  207. 
Re-locating,  208. 
Residency,  210. 
Resident  engineer,  210. 
Ring  posts,  177. 
Road-crossings,  grade,  180. 

overhead,  311. 

signs,  177. 

under-grade,  312. 
Roundhouses,  129. 

S. 
Section,  gang,  146. 

houses,  150. 

posts,  176. 

residency,  224. 

supervisor's,  145. 

track,  145. 

Shims,  expansion,  81. 
Shovels,  160. 
Shrinkage,  222. 
Sidings,  freight,  125. 

passing,  123. 

second  track,  124. 
Signals,  absolute  blocking,  139. 

automatic,  137. 

banjo,  141. 

color  of,  142. 

development,  135. 

flags,  165. 

lanterns,  165. 

manual,  136. 

manual-automatic,  137. 

permissive  blocking,  139. 

semaphore,  140. 

track  circuits,  138. 
Situation  plans,  2-12. 
Slope  stakes,  209. 
Snow-plows,  attached,  191. 

push,  192. 

machine,  or  rotary,  192. 
Spikes,  channeled,  84. 

common,  84. 

common  vs.  screw,  89. 

function  of,  83. 

points  of,  85*. 

screw,  86. 

wear  of,  88. 


INDEX.   . 


319 


Splice-bars,  angle,  75. 

Bonzano,  76. 

fish  plates,  75. 

100  per  cent.,  77. 
Stand-pipes,    or   water-columns, 

133. 

Stub  switch,  93. 
Subdivisions,  145. 

posts,  176. 
Subgrade,  289. 

shape  of,  290. 
Superintendent,  144. 
Supervisor,  145. 

duties  of,  201. 

inspection  by,  201. 
Swell  of  rock,  223. 
Switch,  definition,  92. 

definitions,  94. 

derailing,  121. 

formulas,  lead,  95. 
radius,  96. 

foot  guards,  116. 

guard  rails,  115. 

headblocks,  117. 

interlocking,  121. 

point,  92. 

point  rails,  98. 
length  of,  97. 
long,  98. 
reinforced,  111. 
short,  98. 

rods,  112. 

stands,  113,  114. 

stub,  93. 

timbers,  118. 
bill  of,  120. 
length  of,  119. 

T. 

Tamping  bar,  159. 

pick,  160. 

Telegraph  line,  198. 
Terminals,  128. 

yards,  125. 
Tie-plates,  49. 

annual  cost  of,  52. 

economy  of,  53. 

on  curves,  50. 

types,  Goldie,  51. 


Tie-plates,  types,  P.  R.  R.,  52. 

Servis,  50. 

Ties,  see  cross-ties,  22. 
Tools,  see  track  tools,  151. 
Track  clearances,  196,  197. 
foreman,  147. 
gang,  146. 
gauge  of,  195. 
inspection,  201-205. 
policing,  200. 
signal  circuits,  138. 
sign-posts,  division,  175. 

mile,  175. 

ring,  177. 

section,  176. 

subdivision,  176. 

whistle,  177. 

yard  limit,  176. 
signs,  center  line,  179. 

corner  stones,  179. 

road  crossing,  177. 

trespass,  179. 
tanks,  134. 
tool  house,  149. 
tools,  axes,  164. 

ballast  fork,  163. 

brush  hooks,  169. 

carpenter's  kit,  174. 

chisels,  170. 

claw  bar,  156. 

flags,  165. 

gauges,  166. 

grubbing  hoe,  172. 

hammer,  napping,  155. 
sledge,  155. 
spiking,  153. 

hand-cars,  166. 

houses,  150. 

jacks,  167. 

lanterns,  165. 

level  boards,  169. 

lining  bar,  157. 

list  of,  151 

pick,  clay,  160. 

pick,  tamping,  160. 

pinch  bar,  158. 

post-hole  digger,  172. 

punches,  170. 

push-cars,  166. 

rail  fork,  172. 


320 


INDEX. 


Track  tools,  rail  tongs,  168. 

scythes,  169. 

shovels,  160. 

tamping  bar,  159. 

wrenches,  163. 
walker,  148. 
Tramway,  definition,  1. 

history  of,  1. 
Trespass  signs,  179. 
Trestles,  ballast  roadbed,  258. 
bent,  framed,  242. 

pile,  252. 

pony,  263. 

joints,  dowel,  243. 
drift-bolt,  243. 
iron  plate,  244. 
mortise  and  tenon,  242. 
plaster,  244. 
cap,  246. 
corbels,  254. 
cost  of,  265. 
cross-ties,  257. 
dimensions,  245. 
filling  a  temporary,  188,  264. 
foundations,  249. 

masonry,  249. 

mud-block,  251. 

pile,  250. 
guard  rails,  257. 
height  of,  248. 
locating  and  erecting,  263. 
on  curves,  259. 

sloping  foundation,  260. 

special  cap,  261. 

special  corbels,  261. 

special  cross-ties,  262. 

unsymmetrical  bent,  260. 
permanent,  240. 
posts,  247. 

protection  against  fire,  265. 
sill,  246. 


Trestles,  split  caps,  253. 

stringers,  255. 
length  of,  256. 

temporary,  241. 
Turnouts,  see  switches,  92. 

designing,  99. 

tables,  97. 

U. 
Under-grade  crossing,  312. 


V. 

Vulcanizing,  36. 

W. 

Waste,  221. 

Water,  columns,  133. 

for  locomotives,  132. 

tanks,  132. 
Watershed,  268. 
Waterway,  269. 
Whistle  posts,  177. 
Work  train,  crew,  185. 

engine,  184. 

force,  185. 

form  of,  183. 

function  of,  182. 

tool  car,  184. 
Wreck  train,  190. 

crew,  190. 


Y. 

Yards,  125. 
gravity,  126. 
limit  posts,  176. 
partial  gravity,  128. 


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*  Dudley's  Military  Law  and  the  Procedure  of  Courts-martial. .  .  Large  i2mo,  2  50 
Durand's  Resistance  and  Propulsion  of  Ships '. 8vo,  5  oo 

2 


*  Dyer's  Handbook  of  Light  Artillery I2mo,  3  oo 

Eissler's  Modern  High  Explosives 8vo,  4  oo 

*  Fiebeger's  Text-book  on  Field  Fortification Large  12010,  2  oo 

Hamilton  and  Bond's  The  Gunner's  Catechism i8mo,  i  oo 

*  Hoff 's  Elementary  Naval  Tactics 8vo,  i  50 

Ingalls's  Handbook  of  Problems  in  Direct  Fire 8vo,  4  oo 

*  Lissak's  Ordnance  and  Gunnery 8vo,  6  oo 

*  Ludlow's  Logarithmic  and  Trigonometric  Tables 8vo,  i  oo 

*  Lyons's  Treatise  on  Electromagnetic  Phenomena.  Vols.  I.  and  II.  .8vo,  each,  6  oo 

*  Mahan's  Permanent  Fortifications.    (Mercur.) 8vo,  half  mor.  7  50 

Manual  for  Courts-martial i6mo,  mor.  i  50 

*  Mercur's  Attack  of  Fortified  Places 12010,  2  oo 

*  Elements  of  the  Art  of  War 8vo,  4  oo 

Metcalf's  Cost  of  Manufactures — And  the  Administration  of  Workshops.  .8vo,  5  oo 

*  Ordnance  and  Gunnery.     2  vols Text  i2mo,  Plates  atlas  form  5  oo 

Nixon's  Adjutants'  Manual 24010,  i  oo 

Peabody's  Naval  Architecture 8vo,  7  50 

*  Phelps's  Practical  Marine  Surveying 8vo,  2  50 

Powell's  Army  Officer's  Examiner I2mo,  4  oo 

Sharpe's  Art  of  Subsisting  Armies  in  War i8mo,  mor.  i  50 

*  Tupes  and  Poole's  Manual  of  Bayonet  Exercises  and    Musketry  Fencing. 

24010,  leather,  50 

*  Weaver's  Military  Explosives 8vo,  3  oo 

Woodhull's  Notes  on  Military  Hygiene i6mo,  i  50 


ASSAYING. 

Betts's  Lead  Refining  by  Electrolysis 8vo,  4  oo 

Fletcher's  Practical  Instructions  in  Quantitative  Assaying  with  the  Blowpipe. 

16010,  mor.  i  50 

Furman's  Manual  of  Practical  Assaying 8vo,  3  oo 

Lodge's  Notes  on  Assaying  and  Metallurgical  Laboratory  Experiments.  .  .  .8vo,  3  oo 

Low's  Technical  Methods  of  Ore  Analysis 8vo,  3  oo 

Miller's  Cyanide  Process , .  . .  12010,  i  oo 

Manual  of  Assaying i2mo,  i  oo 

Minet's  Production  of  Aluminum  aod  its  Industrial  Use.     (Waldo.) i2mo,  2  50 

O'Driscoll's  Notes  on  the  Treatment  of  Gold  Ores 8vo,  2  oo 

Ricketts  and  Miller's  Notes  on  Assaying 8vo,  3  oo 

Robine  and  Lenglen's  Cyanide  Industry.     (Le  Clerc.) 8vo,  4  oo 

Ulke's  Modern  Electrolytic  Copper  Refining 8vo,  3  oo 

Wilson's  Chlorination  Process 12010,  I  50 

Cyanide  Processes i2mo,  i  50 


ASTRONOMY. 

Comstock's  Field  Astrooomy  for  Engioeers 8vo,  2  50 

Craig's  Azimuth 4to,  3  50 

Craodall's  Text-book  on  Geodesy  and  Least  Squares 8vo,  3  oo 

Doolittle's  Treatise  on  Practical  Astronomy 8vo,  4  oo 

Gore's  Elements  of  Geodesy . 8vo,  2  50 

Hayford's  Text-book  of  Geodetic  Astronomy 8vo,  3  oo 

Merrimao's  Elements  of  Precise  Surveying  aod  Geodesy 8vo,  2  50 

*  Michie  aod  Harlow's  Practical  Astrooomy .8vo,  3  oo 

Rust's  Ex-meridiao  Altitude,  Azimuth  aod  Star-Fioding  Tables.     (In  Press.) 

*  White's  Elements  of  Theoretical  and  Descriptive  Astronomy 12010,  2  oo 

3 


CHEMISTRY. 

Abderhalden's  Physiological  Chemistry  in  Thirty  Lectures.     (Hall  and  Defren). 
(In  Press.) 

*  Abegg's  Theory  of  Electrolytic  Dissociation,    (von  Ende.) i2mo,  i  25 

Adriance's  Laboratory  Calculations  and  Specific  Gravity  Tables i2mo,  i  25 

Alexeyeff's  General  Principles  of  Organic  Syntheses.     (Matthews.) 8vo,  3  oo 

Allen's  Tables  for  Iron  Analysis 8vo,  3  oo 

Arnold's  Compendium  of  Chemistry.     (Mandel.) Large  i2mo,  3  50 

Association    of  State  and  National  Food  and  Dairy  Departments,  Hartford 

Meeting,  1906 8vo,  3  oo 

Jamestown  Meeting,  1907 8vo,  3  oo 

Austen's  Notes  for  Chemical  Students i2mo,  i  50 

Baskerville's  Chemical  Elements.     (In  Preparation). 

Bernadou's  Smokeless  Powder. — Nitro-cellulose,  and  Theory  of  the  Cellulose 

Molecule i2mo,  2  50 

*  Blanchard's  Synthetic  Inorganic  Chemistry i2mo,  i  oo 

*  Browning's  Introduction  to  the  Rarer  Elements 8vo,  i  50 

Brush  and  Penfield's  Manual  of  Determinative  Mineralogy 8vo,  4  oo 

*  Claassen's  Beet-sugar  Manufacture.     (Hall  and  Rolfe.) 8vo,  3  oo 

Classen's  Quantitative  Chemical  Analysis  by  Electrolysis.    (Boltwood.).  .8vo,  3  oo 

Cohn's  Indicators  and  Test-papers i2mo,  2  oo 

Tests  and  Reagents 8vo,  3  oo 

*  Danneel's  Electrochemistry.     (Merriam.) i2mo,  i  25 

Duhem's  Thermodynamics  and  Chemistry.     (Burgess.) 8vo,  4  oo 

Eakle's  Mineral  Tables  for  the  Determination  of  Minerals  by  their  Physical 

Properties 8vo,  i  25 

Eissler's  Modern  High  Explosives 8vo,  4  oo 

Effront's  Enzymes  and  their  Applications.     (Prescott.) 8vo,  3  oo 

Erdmann's  Introduction  to  Chemical  Preparations.     (Dunlap.) i2mo,  i  25 

*  Fischer's  Physiology  of  Alimentation Large  I2mo,  a  oo 

Fletcher's  Practical  Instructions  in  Quantitative  Assaying  with  the  Blowpipe. 

i2mo,  mor.  i  50 

Fowler's  Sewage  Works  Analyses i2mo,  2  oo 

Fresenius's  Manual  of  Qualitative  Chemical  Analysis.     (Wells.) 8vo,  5  oo 

Manual  of  Qualitative  Chemical  Analysis.  Part  I.  Descriptive.  (Wells.)  8vo,  3  oo 

Quantitative  Chemical  Analysis.     (Conn.)     2  vols 8vo,  12  50 

When  Sold  Separately,  Vol.  I,  $6.     Vol.  II,  $8. 

Fuertes's  Water  and  Public  Health 12010,  i  50 

Furman's  Manual  of  Practical  Assaying 8vo,  3  oo 

*  Getman's  Exercises  in  Physical  Chemistry I2mo?  2  oo 

Gill's  Gas  and  Fuel  Analysis  for  Engineers I2mo,  i  23 

*  Gooch  and  Browning's  Outlines  of  Qualitative  Chemical  Analysis. 

Large  i2mo,  i  25 

Grotenfelt's  Principles  of  Modern  Dairy  Practice.     (Wo  11.) i2mo,  2  oo 

Groth's  Introduction  to  Chemical  Crystallography  (Marshall) i2mo,  i  25 

Hammarsten's  Text-book  of  Physiological  Chemistry.     (Mandel.) 8vo,  4  oo 

Hanausek's  Microscopy  of  Technical  Products.     (Winton.) 8vo,  5  oo 

*  Haskins  and  Macleod's  Organic  Chemistry i2mo,  2  oo 

Helm's  Principles  of  Mathematical  Chemistry.     (Morgan.) I2mo,  i  50 

Hering's  Ready  Reference  Tables  (Conversion  Factors) i6mo,  mor.  2  50 

*  Herrick's  Denatured  or  Industrial  Alcohol 8vo,  4  oo 

Hinds's  Inorganic  Chemistry 8vo,  3  oo 

*  Laboratory  Manual  for  Students i2mo,  i  oo 

*  Holleman's    Laboratory   Manual    of   Organic    Chemistry  for   Beginners. 

(Walker.) i2mo,  i  oo 

Text-book  of  Inorganic  Chemistry.     (Cooper.) 8vo,  2  50 

Text-book  of  Organic  Chemistry.     (Walker  and  Mott.) .8vo,  2  50 

Holley  and  Ladd's  Analysis  of  Mixed  Paints,  Color  Pigments,  and  Varnishes. 

Large  12  mo  2  50 
4 


Hopkins's  Oil-chemists'  Handbook 8vo,    3  oo 

Iddings's  Rock  Minerals 8vo,    5  oo 

Jackson's  Directions  for  Laboratory  V/orli  in  Physiological  Chemistry.  .8vo,     i  25 
Johannsen's  Determination  of  Rock-forming  Minerals  in  Thin  Sections..  .8vo,     4  oo 

Keep's  Cast  Iron 8vo,    2  50 

Ladd's  Manual  of  Quantitative  Chemical  Analysis i2mo,     i  oo 

i/andauer's  Spectrum  Analysis.     (Tingle.) 8vo,    3  oo 

*  .Langworthy  and   Austen's   Occurrence   of  Aluminium  in  Vegetable  Prod- 

ucts, Animal  Products,  and  Natural  Waters 8vo,  2  oo 

Lassar-Cohn's  Application  of  Some  General  Reactions  to  Investigations  in 

Organic  Chemistry.  (Tingle.) i2mo,  i  oo 

Leach's  Inspection  and  Analysis  of  Food  with  Special  Reference  to  State 

Control 8vo,  7  50 

Lob's  Electrochemistry  of  Organic  Compounds.  (Lorenz.) 8vo,  3  oo 

Lodge's  Notes  on  Assaying  and  Metallurgical  Laboratory  Experiments 8vo,  3  oo 

Low's  Technical  Method  of  Ore  Analysis 8vo,  3  oo 

Lunge's  Techno-chemical  Analysis.  (Cohn.) I2mo  i  oo 

*  McKay  and  Larsen's  Principles  and  Practice  of  Butter-making 8vo,     i  50 

Maire's  Modern  Pigments  and  their  Vehicles i2mo,    2  oo 

Mandel's  Handbook  for  Bio-chemical  Laboratory i2mo,     i  50 

*  Martin's  Laboratory  Guide  to  Qualitative  Analysis  with  the  Blowpipe .  .  i2mo,         60 
Mason's  Examination  of  Water.      (Chemical  and  Bacteriological.).  .  .  .  I2mo,     i  25 

Water-supply.     (Considered  Principally  from    a    Sanitary    Standpoint.) 

8vo,    4  oo 

Matthews's  The  Textile  Fibres.   2d  Edition,  Rewritten 8vo,    4  oo 

Meyer's  Determination  of  Radicles  in  Carbon  Compounds.     (Tingle.).  .I2mo, 
Miller's  Cyanide  Process i2mo, 

Manual  of  Assaying i2mo, 

Minet's  Production  of  Aluminum  and  its  Industrial  Use.     (Waldo.).  .  .  .  i2mo, 

Mixter's  Elementary  Text-book  of  Chemistry I2mo, 

Morgan's  Elements  of  Physical  Chemistry izmo, 

Outline  of  the  Theory  of  Solutions  and  its  Results iamo, 


Physical  Chemistry  for  Electrical  Engineers i2mo, 


oo 

CO 
00 

50 
50 

CO 
00 

50 

Morse's  Calculations  used  in  Cane-sugar  Factories.. i6mo,  mor.  50 

*  Muir's  History  of  Chemical  Theories  and  Laws 8vo,  4  oo 

Mullikan's  General  Method  for  the  Identification  of  Pure  Organic  Compounds. 

Vol.  I Large  8vo,  5  oo 

O'Driscoll's  Notes  on  the  Treatment  of  Gold  Ores 8vo,  2  oo 

Ostwald's  Conversations  on  Chemistry.     Part  One.     (Ramsey.) ..i2mo,  i  50 

Part  Two.     (Turnbull.) 121110,  2  oo 

*  Palmer's  Practical  Test  Book  of  Chemistry i2mo,  i  oo 

*  Pauli's  Physical  Chemistry  in  the  Service  of  Medicine.     (Fischer.) .  .  .  .  i2mo,  i   25 

*  Penfield's  Notes  on  Determinative  Mineralogy  and  Record  of  Mineral  Tests. 

8vo,  paper,  50 
Tables   of  Minerals,  Including  the   Use   of  Minerals  and  Statistics  of 

Domestic  Production 8vo,  i  oo 

Pictet's  Alkaloids  and  their  Chemical  Constitution.     (Biddle.) 8vo,  5  oo 

Poole's  Calorific  Power  of  Fuels 8vo,  3  oo 

Prescott  and  Winslow's  Elements  of  Water  Bacteriology,  with  Special  Refer- 
ence to  Sanitary  Water  Analysis i2mo,  i  50 

*  Reisig's  Guide  to  Piece-dyeing 8vo,  25  oo 

Richards  and  Woodman's  Air,  Water,  and  Food  from  a  Sanitary  Standpoint.. 8vo,  2  oo 

Ricketts  and  Miller's  Notes  on  Assaying 8vo,  3  oo 

Rideal's  Disinfection  and  the  Preservation  of  Food 8vo,  4  oo 

Sewage  and  the  Bacterial  Purification  of  Sewage 8vo,  4  oo 

Riggs's  Elementary  Manual  for  the  Chemical  Laboratory 8vo,  i  25 

Robine  and  Lenglen's  Cyanide  Industry.  (Le  Clerc.) 8vo,  4  oo 

Ruddiman's  Incompatibilities  in  Prescriptions 8vo,  2  oo 

Whys  in  Pharmacy  .  .  .  , J2mo,  i  oo 

5 


Ruer's  Elements  of  Metallography.     (Mathewson).     fin  Preparation.) 

Sabin's  Industrial  and  Artistic  Technology  of  Paints  and  Varnish 8vo,  3  oo 

Salkowski's  Physiological  and  Pathological  Chemistry.     (Orndorff.) 8vo,  2  50 

Schimpf's  Essentials  of  Volumetric  Analysis i2mo,  i  25 

*  Qualitative  Chemical  Analysis 8vo,  i  25 

Text-book  of  Volumetric  Analysis i2mo,  2  50 

Smith's  Lecture  Notes  on  Chemistry  for  Dental  Students 8vo,  2  50 

Spencer's  Handbook  for  Cane  Sugar  Manufacturers i6mo,  mor.  3  oo 

Handbook  for  Chemists  of  Beet-sugar  Houses i6mo,  mor.  3  oo 

Stockbridge's  Rocks  and  Soils , 8vo,  2  50 

*  Tillman's  Descriptive  General  Chemistry 8vo,  3  oo 

*  Elementary  Lessons  in  Heat 8vo,  i  50 

Treadwell's  Qualitative  Analysis.     (Hall.) 8vo,  3  oo 

Quantitative  Analysis.     (Hall.) 8vo,  4  oo 

Turneaure  and  Russell's  Public  Water-supplies 8vo,  5  oo 

Van  Deventer's  Physical  Chemistry  for  Beginners.     (Boltwood.) i2mo,  i  50 

Venable's  Methods  and  Devices  for  Bacterial  Treatment  of  Sewage 8vo,  3  oo 

Ward  and  Whipple's  Freshwater  Biology.     (In  Press.) 

Ware's  Beet-sugar  Manufacture  and  Refining.     Vol.  I Small  8vo,  4  oo 

"         "               Vol.11 SmallSvo,  500 

Washington's  Manual  of  the  Chemical  Analysis  of  Rocks, 8vo,  2  oo 

*  Weaver's  Military  Explosives 8vo,  3  oo 

V7ells's  Laboratory  Guide  in  Qualitative  Chemical  Analysis 8vo,  i  50 

Short  Course  in  Inorganic  Qualitative  Chemical  Analysis  for  Engineering 

Students i2mo,  i  50 

Text-book  of  Chemical  Arithmetic I2mo,  i  25 

Whipple's  Microscopy  of  Drinking-water 8vo,  3  50 

Wilson's  Chlorination  Process I2mo  i  53 

Cyanide  Processes i2mo  i  50 

Winton's  Microscopy  of  Vegetable  Foods 8vo  7  50 


CIVIL  ENGINEERING. 

BRIDGES  AND  ROOFS.     HYDRAULICS.     MATERIALS   OF    ENGINEER- 
ING.    RAILWAY   ENGINEERING. 

Baker's  Engineers'  Surveying  Instruments 12 mo,  3  oo 

Bixby's  Graphical  Computing  Table Paper  19^X24^  inches.  25 

Breed  and  Hosmer's  Principles  and  Practice  of  Surveying 8vo,  3  oo 

*  Burr's  Ancient  and  Modern  Engineering  and  the  Isthmian  Canal 8vo,  3  50 


Comstock's  Field  Astronomy  for  Engineers 8vo , 

*  CorthelTs  Allowable  Pressures  on  Deep  Foundations I2mo, 

Crandall's  Text-book  on  Geodesy  and  Least  Squares 8vo, 

Davis's  Elevation  and  Stadia  Tables 8vo, 

Elliott's  Engineering  for  Land  Drainage i2mo, 

Practical  Farm  Drainage i2mo, 

*Fiebeger's  Treatise  on  Civil  Engineering 8vo,    5  oo 

Flemer's  Phototopographic  Methods  and  Instruments 8vo,    5  oo 

Folwell's  Sewerage.      (Designing  and  Maintenance.) 8vo,    3  oo 

Freitag's  Architectural  Engineering 8vo,    3  50 

French  and  Ives's  Stereotomy 8vo,    2  50 

Goodhue's  Municipal  Improvements i2mo,     i  50 

Gore's  Elements  of  Geodesy 8vo,    2  50 

*  Hauch  and  Rice's  Tables  of  Quantities  for  Preliminary  Estimates, I2mo,     i  25 

Hayford's  Text-book  of  Geodetic  Astronomy 8vo,    3  oo 

Bering's  Ready  Reference  Tables  (Conversion  Factors) i6mo,  mor.    2  50 

Howe's  Retaining  Walls  for  Earth. izmo,    i  25 


*  Ives's  Adjustments  of  the  Engineer's  Transit  and  Level i6mo,  Bds.  25 

Ives  and  Hilts's  Problems  in  Surveying i6mo,  mor.  i  50 

Johnson's  (J.  B.)  Theory  and  Practice  of  Surveying .  .Small  8vo,  4  oo 

Johnson's  (L.  J.)  Statics  by  Algebraic  and  Graphic  Methods 8vo,  2  oo 

Kinnicutt,  Winslow  and  Pratt's  Purification  of  Sewage.     (In  Preparation). 
Laplace's    Philosophical    Essay    on    Probabilities.       (Truscott    and   Emory.) 

I2I110,  2    00 

Mahan's  Descriptive  Geometry 8vo,  i  50 

Treatise  on  Civil  Engineering.     (1873.)     (Wood.) 8vo,  5  oo 

Merriman's  Elements  of  Precise  Surveying  and  Geodesy 8vo,  2  50 

Merriman  and  Brooks's  Handbook  for  Surveyors i6mo,  mor.  2  oo 

Morrison's  Elements  of  Highway  Engineering.       (In  Press.) 

Nugent's  Plane  Surveying 8vo,  3  50 

Ogden's  Sewer  Design I2mo,  2  oo 

Parsons's  Disposal  of  Municipal  Refuse 8vo,  2  oo 

Patton's  Treatise  on  Civil  Engineering 8vo,  half  leather,  7  50 

Reed's  Topographical  Drawing  and  Sketching 4to,  5  oo 

Rideal's  Sewage  and  the  Bacterial  Purification  of  Sewage 8vo,  4  oo 

Riemer's  Shaft-sinking  under  Difficult  Conditions.     (Corning  and  Peele.) .  .8vo,  3  oo 

Siebert  and  Biggin's  Modern  Stone-cutting  and  Masonry 8vo,  i  50 

Smith's  Manual  of  Topographical  Drawing.     (McMillan.) 8vo,  2  50 

Soper's  Air  and  Ventilation  of  Subways.     (In  Press.) 

Tracy's  Plane  Surveying I6mo,  mor.  3  oo 

*  Trautwine's  CivM  Engineer's  Pocket-book i6mo,  mor.  5  oo 

Venable's  Garbage  Crematories  in  America 8vo,  2  oo 

Methods  and  Devices  for  Bacterial  Treatment  of  Sewage 8vo,  3  oo 

Wait's  Engineering  and  Architectural  Jurisprudence 8vo,  6  oo 

Sheep,  6  50 

Law  of  Contracts 8vo,  3  oo 

Law  of  Operations  Preliminary  to  Construction  in  Engineering  and  Archi- 
tecture  8vo,  5  oo 

Sheep,  5  50 

Warren's  Stereotomy — Problems  in  Stone-cutting 8vo,  2  50 

*  Waterbury's  Vest-Pocket  Hand-book   of    Mathematics   for   Engineers. 

2fX 5s  inches,  mor.  i  oo 
Webb's  Problems  in  the  Use  and  Adjustment  of  Engineering  Instruments. 

i6mo,  mor.  i  25 

Wilson's  Topographic  Surveying 8vo,  3  50 

BRIDGES  AND  ROOFS. 

Boiler's  Practical  Treatise  on  the  Construction  of  Iron  Highway  Bridges.  .8vo,  2  oo 

Burr  and  Falk's  Design  and  Construction  of  Metallic  Bridges 8vo,  5  oo 

Influence  Lines  for  Bridge  and  Roof  Computations 8vo,  3  oo 

Du  Bois's  Mechanics  of  Engineering.     Vol.  II Srr.all  410,  10  oo 

Foster's  Treatise  on  Wooden  Trestle  Bridges 4to,  5  oo 

Fowler's  Ordinary  Foundations 8vo,  3  50 

French  and  Ives's  Stereotomy 8vo,  2  50 

Greene's  Arches  in  Wood,  Iron,  and  Stone 8vo,  2  50 

Bridge  Trusses 8vo,  2  50 

Roof  Trusses 8vo,  i  25 

Grimm's  Secondary  Stresses  in  Bridge  Trusses 8vo,  2  50 

Heller's  Stresses  in  Structures  and  the  Accompanyin    Deformations 8vo, 

Howe's  Design  of  Simple  Roof-trusses  in  Wood  and  Steel 8vo,  2  oo 

Symmetrical  Masonry  Arches 8vo,  2  50 

Treatise  on  Arches 8vo,  4  oo 

Johnson,  Bryan,  and  Turneaure's  Theory  and  Practice  in  the  Designing  of 

Modern  Framed  Structures Small  4to,  10  oo 

7 


Merriman  and  Jacoby's  Text-book  on  Roofs  and  Bridges: 

Part  I.      Stresses  in  Simple  Trusses 8vo,  2  50 

Part  II.    Graphic  Statics 8vo,  2  50 

Part  III.  Bridge  Design 8vo,  2  50 

Part  IV.   Higher  Structures 8vo,  2  50 

Morison's  Memphis  Bridge Oblong  4to,  10  oo 

Sondericker's  Graphic  Statics,  with  Applications  to  Trusses,  Beams,  and  Arches. 

8vo,  2  oo 

Waddell's  De  Pontibus,  Pocket-book  for  Bridge  Engineers i6mo,  mor,  2  oo 

*          Specifications  for  Steel  Bridges i2mo,  50 

Waddell  and  Harrington's  Bridge  Engineering.     (In  Preparation.) 

Wright's  Designing  of  Draw-spans.     Two  parts  in  one  volume 8vo,  3  50 


HYDRAULICS. 

Barnes's  Ice  Formation 8vo,  3  oo 

Bazin's  Experiments  upon  the  Contraction  of  the  Liquid  Vein  Issuing  from 

an  Orifice.     (Trautwine.) 8vo,  2  oo 

Bovey's  Treatise  on  Hydraulics 8vo,  5  oo 

Church's  Diagrams  of  Mean  Velocity  of  Water  in  Open  Channels. 

Oblong  4to,  paper,  i  50 

Hydraulic  Motors.  .  .' 8vo,  2  oo 

Mechanics  of  Engineering * 8vo,  6  oo 

Coffin's  Graphical  Solution  of  Hydraulic  Problems i6mo,  morocco,  2  50 

Flather's  Dynamometers,  and  the  Measurement  of  Power i2mo,  3  oo 

Folwell's  Water-supply  Engineering 8vo,  4  oo 

Frizell's  Water-power 8vo,  5  oo 

Fuertes's  Water  and  Public  Health i2mo,  i  50 

Water-filtration  Works i2mo,  2  50 

Ganguillet  and  Kutter's  General  Formula  for  the  Uniform  Flow  of  Water  in 

Rivers  and  Other  Channels.     (Hering  and  Trautwine.) 8vo,  4  oo 

Hazen's  Clean  Water  and  How  to  Get  It Large  I2mo,  i  5o 

Filtration  of  Public  Water-supplies 8vo,  3  oo 

Hazle hurst's  Towers  and  Tanks  for  Water- works 8vo,  2  50 

Herschel's  115  Experiments  on  the  Carrying  Capacity  of  Large,  Riveted,  Metal 

Conduits 8vo,  2  oo 

Hoyt  and  Grover's  River  Discharge 8vo,  2  oo 

Hubbard  and  Kiersted's  Water- works  Management  and  Maintenance 8vo,  4  uo 

*  Lyndon's  Development  and  Electrical  Distribution  of  Waler  Power.  .  .  .8vo,  3  oo 
Mason'.s  Water-supply.     (Considered  Principally  from  a  Sanitary  Standpoint.) 

8vo,  4  oo 

Merriman's  Treatise  on  Hydraulics 8vo,  5  oo 

*  Michie's  Elements  of  Analytical  Mechanics 8vo,  4  oo 

Molitor's  Hydraulics  of  Rivers,  Weirs  and  Sluices.     ^In  Press.) 

Schuyler's   Reservoirs  for  Irrigation,   Water-power,   and   Domestic   Water- 
supply Large  8vo,  5  oo 

*  Thomas  and  Watt's  Improvement  of  Rivers 4to,  6  oo 

Turneaure  and  Russell's  Public  Water-supplies 8vo,  5  oo 

Wegmann's  Design  and  Construction  of  Dams.     5th  Ed.,  enlarged 4to,  6  oo 

Water-supply  of  the  City  of  New  York  from  1658  to  1895 4to,  10  oo 

Whipple's  Value  of  Pure  Water. Large  12010,  i  oo 

Williams  and  Hazen's  Hydraulic  Tables 8vo,  i  50 

Wilson's  Irrigation  Engineering Small  8vo,  4  oo 

Wolff's  Windmill  as  a  Prime  Mover 8vo,  3  oo 

Wood's  Elements  of  Analytical  Mechanics 8vo,  3  oo 

Turbines 8vo,  2  50 

8 


MATERIALS  OF  ENGINEERING. 

Baker's  Roads  and  Pavements 8vo,  5  oo 

Treatise  on  Masonry  Construction 8vo,  5  oo 

Birkmire's  Architectural  Iron  and  Steel 8vo,  3  50 

Compound  Riveted  Girders  as  Applied  in  Buildings 8vo,  2  oo 

Black's  United  States  Public  Works .  Oblong  4to,  5  oo 

Bleininger's  Manufacture  of  Hydraulic  Cement.      (In  Preparation.) 

*  Bovey's  Strength  of  Materials  and  Theory  of  Structures 8vo,  7  50 

Burr's  Elasticity  and  Resistance  of  the  Materials  of  Engineering 8vo,  7  50 

Byrne's  Highway  Construction 8vo,  5  oo 

Inspection  of  the  Materials  and  Workmanship  Employed  in  Construction. 

i6mo,  3  oo 

Church's  Mechanics  of  Engineering 8vo,  6  oo 

Du  Bois's  Mechanics  of  Engineering. 

Vol.    I.  Kinematics,  Statics,  Kinetics Small  4to,  7  50 

Vol.  II.  The  Stresses  in  Framed  Structures,  Strength  of  Materials  and 

Theory  of  Flexures Small  4to,  10  oo 

*Eckel's  Cements,  Limes,  and  Plasters 8vo,  6  oo 

Stone  and  Clay  Products  used  in  Engineering.     (In  Preparation.) 

Fowler's  Ordinary  Foundations 8vo,  3  50 

Graves's  Forest  Mensuration 8vo,  4   oo 

Green's  Principles  of  American  Forestry i2mo,  i   so 

*  Greene's  Structural  Mechanics 8vo,  2  50 

Holly  and  Ladd's  Analysis  of  Mixed  Paints,  Color  Pigments  and  Varnishes 

Large  i2mo,  2  50 

Johnson's  Materials  of  Construction Large  8vo,  6  oo 

Keep's  Cast  Iron 8vo,  2  50 

Kidder's  Architects  and  Builders'  Pocket-book i6mo,  5  oo 

Lanza's  Applied  Mechanics 8vo,  7  50 

Maire's  Modern  Pigments  and  their  Vehicles      .    I2mo,  2  oo 

Martens's  Handbook  on  Testing  Materials.     (Henning.)     2  vols 8vo,  7  50 

Maurer's  Technical  Mechanics 8vo,  4  oo 

Merrill's  Stones  for  Building  and  Decoration 8vo,  5  oo 

Merriman's  Mechanics  of  Materials 8vo,  5  oo 

*  Strength  of  Materials I2mo,  i  oo 

Metcalf's  Steel.    -A  Manual  for  Steel-users i2mo,  2  oo 

Patton's  Practical  Treatise  on  Foundations 8vo,  5  oo 

Rice's  Concrete  Block  Manufacture 8vo,  2  oo 

Richardson's  Modern  Asphalt  Pavements 8vo,  3  oo 

Richey's  Handbook  for  Superintendents  of  Construction. ...      ....  i6mo,  mor.,  4  oo 

*  Ries's  Clays:  Their  Occurrence,  Properties,  and  Uses 8vo,  5  oo 

Sabin's  Industrial  and  Artistic  Technology  of  Paints  and  Varnish 8vo,  3  oo 

*  Schwarz's  Longleaf  Pine  in  Virgin  Forest,.. i2mo,  i   25 

Snow's  Principal  Species  of  Wood 8vo,  3  50 

Spalding's  Hydraulic  Cement i2mo,  2  oo 

Text-book  on  Roads  and  Pavements i2mo,  2  oo 

Taylor  and  Thompson's  Treatise  on  Concrete,  Plain  and  Reinforced 8vo,  5  oo 

Thurston's  Materials  of  Engineering.     In  Three  Parts 8vo,  8  oo 

Parti.     Non-metallic  Materials  of  Engineering  and  Metallurgy 8vo,  2  oo 

Part  II.     Iron  and  Steel 8vo,  3  50 

Part  III.     A  Treatise  on  Brasses,  Bronzes,  and  Other  Alloys  and  their 

Constituents 8vo,  2  50 

Tillson's  Street  Pavements  and  Paving  Materials 8vo,  4  oo 

Turneaure  and  Maurer's  Principles  of  Reinforced  Concrete  Construction..  .8vo,  3  oo 
Wood's  (De  V.)  Treatise  on  the  Resistance  of  Materials,  and  an  Appendix  on 

the  Preservation  of  Timber 8vo,  2  oo 

Wood's  (M.  P.)  Rustless  Coatings:    Corrosion  and  Electrolysis  of  Iron  and 

Steel 8vo,  4  oo 

9 


RAILWAY  ENGINEERING. 

Andrews's  Handbook  for  Street  Railway  Engineers 3x5  inches,  mor.  i  25 

Berg's  Buildings  and  Structures  of  American  Railroads 4to,  5  oo 

Brooks's  Handbook  of  Street  Railroad  Location i6mo,  mor.  50 

Butt's  Civil  Engineer's  Field-book i6mo,  mor.  50 

CrandalTs  Railway  and  Other  Earthwork  Tables 8vo,  50 

Transition  Curve .• i6mo,  mor.  50 

*  Crockett's  Methods  for  Earthwork  Computations 8vo,  50 

Dawson's  "Engineering"  and  Electric  Traction  Pocket-book i6mo,  mor.  5  oo 

Dredge's  History  of  the  Pennsylvania  Railroad:   (1879) Paper,  5  oo 

Fisher's  Table  of  Cubic  Yards Cardboard,  25 

Godwin's  Railroad  Engineers'  Field-book  and  Explorers'  Guide.  .  .  i6mo,  mor.  2  50 
Hudson's  Tables  for  Calculating  the  Cubic  Contents  of  Excavations  and  Em- 
bankments  8vo,  i  oo 

Ives   and  Hilts's   Problems   in  Surveying,  Railroad   Surveying  and  Geodesy 

i6mo,  mor.  i  50 

Molitor  and  Beard's  Manual  for  Resident  Engineers i6mo,  i  oo 

Nagle's  Field  Manual  for  Railroad  Engineers i6mo,  mor.  3  oo 

Philbnck's  Field  Manual  for  Engineers i6mo,  mor.  3  oo 

Raymond's  Railroad  Engineering.     3  volumes. 

Vol.      I.  Railroad  Field  Geometry.     (In  Preparation.) 

Vol.    II.  Elements  of  Railroad  Engineering 8vo,  3  50 

Vol  III.  Railroad  Engineer's  Field  Book.     (In  Preparation.) 

Searles's  Field  Engineering i6mo,  mor.  3  oo 

Railroad  Spiral i6mo,  mor.  i  50 

Taylor's  Prismoidal  Formulae  and  Earthwork 8vo,  i  50 

*Trautwine's  Field  Practice  of  Laying   Out  Circular  Curves   for  Railroads. 

i2mo.  mor,  2  50 

*  Method  of  Calculating  the  Cubic  Contents  of  Excavations  and  Embank- 

ments by  the  Aid  of  Diagrams 8vo,  2  oo 

Webb's  Economics  of  Railroad  Construction Large  i2mo,  2  50 

Railroad  Construction i6mo,  mor.  5  oo 

Wellington's  Economic  Theory  of  the  Location  of  Railways Small  8vo,  5  oo 

DRAWING. 

Barr's  Kinematics  of  Machinery 8vo,  2  50 

*  Bartlett's  Mechanical  Drawing: 8vo,  3  oo 

*  "              "            Abridged  Ed 8vo,  150 

Coolidge's  Manual  of  Drawing 8vo,  paper,  i  oo 

Coolidge  and  Freeman's  Elements  of  General  Drafting  for  Mechanical  Engi- 
neers  Oblong  4to,  2  50 

Durley's  Kinematics  of  Machines ? 8vo,  4  oo 

Emch's  Introduction  to  Projective  Geometry  and  its  Applications Svo,  2  50 

Hill's  Text-book  on  Shades  and  Shadows,  and  Perspective Svo,  2  oo 

Jamison's  Advanced  Mechanical  Drawing Svo,  2  oo 

Elements  of  Mechanical  Drawing Svo,  2  50 

Jones's  Machine  Design: 

Part  I.     Kinematics  of  Machinery Svo,  i  50 

Part  II.    Form,  Strength,  and  Proportions  of  Parts Svo,  3  oo 

MacCord's  Elements  of  Descriptive  Geometry Svo,  3  oc 

Kinematics;  or,  Practical  Mechanism Svo,  5  oo 

Mechanical  Drawing 4to,  4  oo 

Velocity  Diagrams Svo,  i  50 

McLeod's  Descriptive  Geometry Large  i2mo,  i  50 

*  Mahan's  Descriptive  Geometry  and  Stone-cutting Svo,  i  50 

Industrial  Drawing.     (Thompson.) Svo,  3  50 

10 


Meyer's  Descriptive  Geometry 8vo,  2  oo 

Reed's  Topographical  Drawing  and  Sketching. 4to,  5  oo 

Reid's  Course  in  Mechanical  Drawing 8vo,  2  oa 

Text-book  of  Mechanical  Drawing  and  Elementary  Machine  Design. 8vo,  3  oa 

Robinson's  Principles  of  Mechanism 8vo,  3  oo 

Schwamb  and  Merrill's  Elements  of  Mechanism 8vo,  3  oo 

Smith's  (R.  S.)  Manual  of  Topographical  Drawing.     (McMillan.) 8vo,  2  50 

Smith  (A.  W.)  and  Marx's  Machine  Design 8vo,  3  oo- 

*  Titsworth's  Elements  of  Mechanical  Drawing Oblong  8vo,  i   25 

Barren's  Drafting  Instruments  and  Operations i2mo,  i   25. 

Elements  of  Descriptive  Geometry,  Shadows,  and  Perspective 8vo,  3  50 

Elements  of  Machine  Construction  and  Drawing 8vo,  7  50 

Elements  of  Plane  and  Solid  Free-hand  Geometrical  Drawing.  .  .    i.amo,  i  oo 

General  Problems  of  Shades  and  Shadows 8vo,  3  oo 

Manual  of  Elementary  Problems  in  the  Linear  Perspective  of  Form  and 

Shadow i2mo,  i   oo 

Manual  of  Elementary  Projection  Drawing i2mo,  i  50 

Plane  Problems  in  Elementary  Geometry i2mo,  i   25 

Problems,  Theorems,  and  Examples  in  Descriptive  Geometry 8vo,  2  50 

Weisbach's     Kinematics    and    Power    of    Transmission.         (Hermann    and 

Klein.) 8vo,  5  oo 

Wilson's  (H.  M.)  Topographic  Surveying 8vo,  3  50 

Wilson's  (V.  T.)  Free-hand  Lettering 8vo,  i  oo 

Free-hand  Perspective 8vo,  2  50 

Woolf' s  Elementary  Course  in  Descriptive  Geometry Large  8vo,  3  oo 

ELECTRICITY  AND  PHYSICS. 

*  Abegg's  Theory  of  Electrolytic  Dissociation,     (von  Ende.) I2mo,  i   25 

Andrews's  Hand-Book  for  Street  Railway  Engineering 3X5  inches,  mor.,  i  25 

Anthony  and  Brackett's  Text-book  of  Physics.     (Magie.) Large  i2mo,  3  oo 

Anthony's  Lecture-notes  on  the  Theory  of  Electrical  Measurements.  .  .  .  12 mo,  i  oo 

Benjamin's  History  of  Electricity 8vo,  3  oo 

Voltaic  Cell 8vo,  3  oo 

Betts's  Lead  Refining  and  Electrolysis 8vo,  4  oo 

Classen's  Quantitative  Chemical  Analysis  by  Electrolysis.     (Boltwood.).8vo,  3  oo 

*  Collins's  Manual  of  Wireless  Telegraphy 12010,  i  50 

Mor.  2  oo 

Crehore  and  Squier's  Polarizing  Photo-chronograph 8vo,  3  oa 

*  Danneel's  Electrochemistry.     (Merriam.) i2mo,  i  25 

Dawson's  "Engineering"  and  Electric  Traction  Pockei-book i6mo,  mor  5  oo 

Dolezalek's  Theory  of  the  Lead  Accumulator  (Storage  Battery),    (von  Ende.) 

i2mo,  2  50 

Duhem's  Thermodynamics  and  Chemistry.     (Burgess.) 8vo,  4  oo 

Flather's  Dynamometers,  and  the  Measurement  of  Power I2mo,  3  oo 

Gilbert's  De  Magnete.     (Mottelay.) 8vo,  2  50 

*  Hanchett's  Alternating  Currents I2mo,  i  oo 

Bering's  Ready  Reference  Tables  (Conversion  Factors) i6mo,  mor.  2  50 

Hobart  and  Ellis's  High-speed  Dynamo  Electric  Machinery.     (In  Press.) 

Holman's  Precision  of  Measurements 8vo,  2  oo 

Telescopic   Mirror-scale  Method,  Adjustments,  and   Tests.  ..  .Large  8vo,  75 

*  Karapetoff's  Experimental  Electrical  Engineering 8vo,  6  oo 

Kinzbrunner's  Testing  of  Continuous-current  Machines 8vo,  2  oo 

Landauer's  Spectrum  Analysis.     (Tingle.) 8vo,  3  oo 

Le  Chatelier's  High-temperature  Measurements.  (Boudouard — Burgess.)  i2mo,  3  oo 

Lob's  Electrochemistry  of  Organic  Compounds.     (Lorenz.) 8vo,  3  oo 

*  London's  Development  and  Electrical  Distribntion  of  Water  Power  .  .  .  .8vo,  3  oo 

*  Lyons'?  Treatise  on  Electromagnetic  Phenomena.   Vols.  I.  and  II.  8vo,  each,  6  oo 

*  Michie's  Elements  of  Wave  Motion  Relating  to  Sound  and  Light 8vo,  4  oo 

11 


Morgan's  Outline  of  the  Theory  of  Solution  and  its  Results i2mo,  i  oo 

*  Physical  Chemistry  for  Electrical  Engineers I2mo,  i  50 

Niaudet's  Elementary  Treatise  on  Electric  Batteries.     (Fishback).  .  .  .  i2mo.  a  50 

*  Norris's  Introduction  to  the  Study   of  Electrical  Engineering .Svo,  2  50 

*  Parshalland  Hobart's  Electric  Machine  Design 4to,  half  morocco,  12  50 

Reagan's  Locomotives:    Simple,  Compound,  and  Electric.      New  Edition. 

Large  i2mo,  3  50 

*  Rosenberg's  Electrical  Engineering.     (Haldane  Gee — Kinzbrunner.).  .  .8vo,  2  oo 

Ryan,  Norris,  and  Hoxie's  Electrical  Machinery.     Vol.  1 8vo,  2  50 

Swapper's  Laboratory  Guide  for  Students  in  Physical  Chemistry i2mo,  i  oo 

Thurston's  Stationary  Steam-engines 8vo,  2  50 

*  Tillman's  Elementary  Lessons  in  Heat 8vo,  i  50 

Tory  and  Pitcher's  Manual  of  Laboratory  Physics Large  i2mo,  2  oo 

Ulke's  Modern  Electrolytic  Copper  Refining Svo,  3  oo 

LAW. 

*  Davis's  Elements  of  Law Svo,    2  50 

*  Treatise  on  the  Military  Law  of  United  States Svo,    7  oo 

*  Sheep,     7  50 

*  Dudley's  Military  Law  and  the  Procedure  of  Courts-martial  .  . .  .Large  i2mo,     2  50 

Manual  for  Courts-martial i6mo,  mor.     i  50 

Wait's  Engineering  and  Architectural  Jurisprudence Svo,    6  oo 

Sheep,    6  50 

Law  of  Contracts . Svo,    3  oo 

Law  of  Operations  Preliminary  to  Construction  in  Engineering  and  Archi- 
tecture..  Svo      5  oo 

Sheep,    5  50 
MATHEMATICS. 

Baker's  Elliptic  Functions Svo, 

Briggs's  Elements  of  Plane  Analytic  Geometry.    (Bocher) i2mo, 

*  Buchanan's  Plane  and  Spherical  Trigonometry Svo, 

Byerley's  Harmonic  Functions Svo, 

Chandler's  Elements  of  the  Infinitesimal  Calculus 12 mo, 

Compton's  Manual  of  Logarithmic  Computations i2mo, 

Davis's  Introduction  to  the  Logic  of  Algebra Svo,- 

*  Dickson's  College  Algebra Large  i2mo, 

*  Introduction  to  the  Theory  of  Algebraic  Equations Large  i2mo, 

Emch's  Introduction  to  Projective  Geometry  and  its  Applications Svo, 

Fiske's  Functions  of  a  Complex  Variable Svo, 

Halsted's  Elementary  Synthetic  Geometry Svo, 

Elements  of  Geometry Svo, 

*  Rational  Geometry i2mo, 

Hyde's  Grassmann's  Space  Analysis Svo, 

*  Jonnson's  (J-  B.)  Three-place  Logarithmic  Tables:  Vest-pocket  size,  paper,         is 

100  copies,     5  oo 

*  Mounted  on  heavy  cardboard,  8X 10  inches,         25 

10  copies,  2  oo 
Johnson's  (W.  W.)  Abridged  Editions  of  Differential  and  Integral  Calculus 

Large  i2mo,  i  vol.  2  50 

Curve  Tracing  in  Cartesian  Co-ordinates I2mo,  i  oo 

Differential  Equations 8vo,  i  oo 

Elementary  Treatise  oa  Differential  Calculus.     (In  Press.) 

Elementary  Treatise  on  the  Integral  Calculus Large  i2mo>  i  50 

*  Theoretical  Mechanics i2mo,  3  oo 

Theory  of  Errors  and  the  Method  of  Least  Squares I2mo,  i  50 

Treatise  on  Differential  Calculus Large  i2mo,  3  oo 

Treatise  on  the  Integral  Calculus Large  i2mo,  3  oo 

Treatise  on  Ordinary  and  Partial  Differential  Equations. . Large  12 mo,  3  50 

12 


iaplace's  Philosophical  Essay  on  Probabilities.     (Truscott  and  Emory. ).i2mo,     2  oo 

*  Ludlow  and  Bass's  Elements  of  Trigonometry  and  Logarithmic  and  Other 

Tables 8vo,     3  oo 

Trigonometry  and  Tables  published  separately Each,     2  oo 

*  Ludlow's  Logarithmic  and  Trigonometric  Tables 8vo,     i  oo 

Macfarlane's  Vector  Analysis  and  Quaternions 8vo,     i  oo 

McMahon's  Hyperbolic  Functions 8vo,     i  oo 

Manning's  IrrationalNumbers  and  their  Representation  bySequences  and  Series 

i2mo,     i   25 
Mathematical  Monographs.     Edited  by  Mansfield  Merriman  and  Robert 

S.  Woodward Octavo,  each     i  oo 

No.  i.  History  of  Modern  Mathematics,  by  David  Eugene  Smith. 
No.  2.  Synthetic  Projective  Geometry,  by  George  Bruce  Halsted. 
No.  3.  Determinants,  by  Laenas  Gifford  Weld.  No.  4.  Hyper- 
bolic Functions,  by  James  McMahon.  No,  S.  Harmonic  Func- 
tions, by  William  E.  Byerly.  No.  6.  Grassmann's  Space  Analysis, 
by  Edward  W.  Hyde.  No.  7.  Probability  and  Theory  of  Errors, 
by  Robert  S.  Woodward.  No.  8.  Vector  Analysis  and  Quaternions, 
by  Alexander  Macfarlane.  No.  9.  Differential  Equations,  by 
William  Woolsey  Johnson.  No.  10.  The  Solution  of  Equations, 
by  Mansfield  Merriman.  No.  n.  Functions  of  a  Complex  Variable, 
by  Thomas  S.  Fiske. 

Maurer's  Technical  Mechanics 8vo,    4  oo 

Merilman's  Method  of  Least  Squares 8vo,    2  oo 

Solution  of  Equations 8vo,     I  oo 

Rice  and  Johnson's  Differential  and  Integral  Calculus.     2  vols.  in  .one. 

Large  i2mo,     i  50 

Elementary  Treatise  on  the  Differential  Calculus Large  i2mo,     3  oo 

Smith's  History  of  Modern  Mathematics 8vo,     i  oo 

*  Veblen  and  Lennes's  Introduct'on  to  the  Real  Infinitesimal  Analysis  of  One 

Variable 8vo,    2  oo 

*  Waterbury's  Vest  Pocket  Hand-Book  of  Mathematics  for  Engineers. 

al-Xsi  inches,  mor.,     i  oo 

Weld's  Determinations 8vo,     i  oo 

Wood's  Elements  of  Co-ordinate  Geometry 8vo,    2  oo 

Woodward's  Probability  and  Theory  of  Errors 8vo,     i  oo 

MECHANICAL  ENGINEERING. 

MATERIALS   OF   ENGINEERING,   STEAM-ENGINES  AND   BOILERS. 

Bacon's  Forge  Practice i2mo,  i  50 

Baldwin's  Steam  Heating  for  Buildings i2mo,  2  50 

Bair's  Kinematics  of  Machinery 8vo,  2  50 

*  Bartlett's  Mechanical  Drawing 8vo,  3  oo 

*  "  '  "        Abridged  Ed 8vo,     150 

Benjamin's  Wrinkles  and  Recipes 12010,    2  oo 

*  Burr's  Ancient  and  Modern  Engineering  and  the  Isthmian  Canal 8vo,    3  50 

Carpenter's  Experimental  Engineering 8vo,    6  oo 

Heating  and  Ventilating  Buildings 8vo,    4  oo 

Clerk's  Gas  and  Oil  Engine Large  i2mo,    4  oo 

Compton's  First  Lessons  in  Metal  Working i2mo,        50 

Compton  and  De  Groodt's  Speed  Lathe 12mo,         50 

Coolidge's  Manual  of  Drawing 8vo,  paper,        oo 

Coolidge  and  Freeman's  Elements  of  General  Drafting  for  Mechanical  En- 
gineers  Oblong  4to, 

Cromwell's  Treatise  on  Belts  and  Pulleys i2mo, 


Treatise  on  Toothed  Gearing i2mo, 

Durley's  Kinematics  of  Machines 8vo,    4  oo 

13 


Flather's  Dynamometers  and  the  Measurement  of  Power, I2mo,  3  oo> 

Rope  Driving i2mo,  2  oo 

Gill's  Gas  and  Fuel  Analysis  for  Engineers i2mo,  i  25 

Goss's  Locomotive  Sparks 8vo,  2  oo 

Hall's  Car  Lubrication i2mo,  i  oo 

Bering's  Ready  Reference  Tables  (Conversion  Factors) i6mo,  mor.,  2  50 

Hobart  and  Eliis's  High  Speed  Dynamo  Electric  Machinery.     (In  Press.) 

Button's  Gas  Engine 8ro,  5  oo 

Jamison's  Advanced  Mechanical  Drawing 8vo,  2  oo 

Elements  of  Mechanical  Drawing 8vo,  2  50 

Jones's  Machine  Design: 

Part  I.     Kinematics  of  Machinery 8vo,  i  50 

Part  II.     Form,  Strength,  and  Proportions  of  Parts 8vo,  3  oo> 

Kent's  Mechanical  Engineers'  Pocket-book i6mo,  mor  ,  5  oo 

Kerr's  Power  and  Power  Transmission 8vo,  2  oo 

Leonard's  Machine  Shop  Tools  and  Methods   8vo,  4  oo 

*  Lorenz's  Modern  Refrigerating  Machinery.    (Pope,  Haven,  and  Dean.)  .  .8vo,  4  oo 
MacCord's  Kinematics;   or,  Practical  Mechanism 8vo,  5  oo 

Mechanical  Drawing 4to,  4  oo 

Velocity  Diagrams 8vo,  i  50 

MacFarland's  Standard  Reduction  Factors  for  Gases. 8vo,  i  50 

Mahan's  Industrial  Drawing.     (Thompson.) 8vo,  3  50 

*  Parshall  and  Hobart's  Electric  Machine  Design Small  4to,  half  leather,   12  50 

Peele's  Compressed  Air  Plant  for  Mines.     (In  Press.) 

Poole's  Calorific  Power  of  Fuels 8vo,  3  oo 

*  Porter's  Engineering  Reminiscences,  1855  to  1882 8vo,  3  oo 

Reid's  Course  in  Mechanical  Drawing 8vo,  2  oo 

Text-book  of  Mechanical  Drawing  and  Elementary  Machine  Design. 8vo,  3  oo 

Richard's  Compressed  Air i2mo,  i  50 

Robinson's  Principles  of  Mechanism 8vo,  3  oo 

Schwamb  and  Merrill's  Elements  of  Mechanism 8vo,  3  oo 

Smith's  (O.)  Press-working  of  Metals 8vo,  3  oo 

Smith  (A.  W.)  and  Marx's  Machine  Design 8vo,  3  oo 

Sorel '  s  Carbureting  and  Combustion  in  Alcohol  Engines .    (Woodward  and  Preston) . 

Large  12 mo,  3  oo 
Thurston's  Animal  as  a  Machine  and  Prime  Motor,  and  the  Laws  of  Energetics.  • 

i2mo,  i  oo 

Treatise  on  Friction  and  Lost  Work  in  Machinery  and  Mill  Work...  8vo,  3  oo 

Tillson's  Complete  Automobile  Instructor i6mo,  i  50 

mor.,  2  oo 

*  Titsworth's  Elements  of  Mechanical  Drawing Oblong  8vo,  i   25 

Warren's  Elements  of  Machine  Construction  and  Drawing 8vo,  7  5<> 

*  Waterbury's  Vest  Pocket  Hand  Book  of  Mathematics  for  Engineers. 

2|X  5l  inches,  mor.,  i   oo 
Weisbach's    Kinematics    and    the    Power    of    Transmission.     (Herrmann — 

Klein.) , 8vo,  5  oo 

Machinery  of  Transmission  and  Governors.     (Herrmann — Klein.).  .8vo,  5  oo 

Wolff's  Windmill  as  a  Prime  Mover 8vo,  3  oo 

Wood's  Turbines 8vo,  2  50 

MATERIALS   OF   ENGINEERING. 

*  Bovey's  Strength  of  Materials  and  Theory  of  Structures 8vo,  7  50 

Burr's  Elasticity  and  Resistance  of  the  Materials  of  Engineering 8vo,  7  50 

Church's  Mechanics  of  Engineering 8vo,  6  oo 

*  Greene's  Structural  Mechanics 8vo,  2  50 

Holley  and  Ladd's  Analysis  of  Mixed  Paints,  Color  Pigments,  and  Varnishes. 

Large  i2mo,  2  50 

Johnson's  Materials  of  Construction 8vo,  6  oo 

Keep's  Cast  Iron 8vo,  2  50 

Lanza's  Applied  Mechanics 8vo,  7  50 

14 


Maire's  Modern  Pigments  and  their  Vehicles . .  i2mo,  2  oo 

Martens's  Handbook  on  Testing  Materials.     (Henning.) 8vo,  7  50 

Maurer's  Technical  Mechanics 8vo,  4  oo 

Merriman's  Mechanics  of  Materials 8vo,  5  oo 

*         Strength  of  Materials i2mo,  i  oo 

Metcalf's  Steel.     A  Manual  for  Steel-users tamo,  2  oo 

Sabin's  Industrial  and  Artistic  Technology  of  Paints  and  Varnish 8vo,  3  oo 

Smith's  Materials  of  Machines i2mo,  i  oo 

Thurston's  Materials  of  Engineering 3  vols.,  8vo,  8  oo 

Part  I.     Non-metallic  Materials  of  Engineering,  see  Civil  Engineering, 
page  9. 

Part  II.     Iron  and  Steel 8vo,  3  50 

Part  III.     A  Treatise  on  Brasses,  Bronzes,  and  Other  Alloys  and  their 

Constituents 8vo,  2  50 

Wood's  (De  V.)  Elements  of  Analytical  Mechanics 8vo,  3  oo 

Treatise  on    the    Resistance    of    Materials  and    an  Appendix  on  the 

Preservation  of  Timber 8vo,  a  oo 

"Wood's  (M.  P.)  Rustless  Coatings:    Corrosion  and  Electrolysip  of  Iron  and 

Steel 8vo,  4  oo 

STEAM-ENGINES  AND  BOILERS. 

Berry's  Temperature-entropy  Diagram I2mo,  i  25 

Carnot's  Reflections  on  the  Motive  Power  of  Heat.     (Thurston.) i2mo,  i  50 

•Chase'-s  Art  of  Pattern  Making i2mo,  2  50 

Creighton's  Steam-engine  and  olher  Heat-motors 8vo,  500 

Dawson's  "Engineering"  and  Electric  Traction  Pocket-book.  .  .  .i6mo,  mor.,  5  oo 

Ford's  Boiler  Making  for  Boiler  Makers i8mo,  i  oo 

Goss's  Locomotive  Performance 8vo,  5  oo 

Hemenway's  Indicator  Practice  and  Steam-engine  Economy i2mo,  2  oo 

Button's  Heat  and  Heat-engines 8vo.  5  oo 

Mechanical  Engineering  of  Power  Plants.  . 8vo,  5  oo 

Kent's  Steam  boiler  Economy 8vo,  4  oo 

Kneass's  Practice  and  Theory  of  the  Injector 8vo,  i  50 

MacCord's  Slide-valves 8vo,  2  oo 

Meyer's  Modern  Locomotive  Construction 4to,  10  oo 

Moyer's  Steam  Turbines.     (Tn  Press.) 

Peabody's  Manual  of  the  Steam-engine  Indicator I2mo,  i  50 

Tables  of  the  Properties  of  Saturated  Steam  and  Other  Vapors 8vo,  i  oo 

Thermodynamics  of  the  Steam-engine  and  Other  Heat-engines 8vo,  5  oo 

Valve-gears  for  Steam-engines 8vo,  2  50 

Peabody  and  Miller's  Steam-boilers 8vo,  4  oo 

Pray's  Twenty  Years  with  the  Indicator. Large  8vo,  2  50 

Pupin's  Thermodynamics  of  Reversible  Cycles  in  Gases  and  Saturated  Vapors. 

(Osterberg.) I2mo,  i  25 

Reagan's  Locomotives:    Simple,  Compound,  and  Electric.     New  Edition. 

Large  12 mo,  3  50 

Sinclair's  Locomotive  Engine  Running  and  Management I2mo,  2  oo 

Smart's  Handbook  of  Engineering  Laboratory  Practice 12010,  2  50 

Snow's  Steam-boiler  Practice 8vo,  3  oo 

Spangler's  Notes  on  Thermodynamics I2mo,  i  oo 

Valve-gears 8vo,  2  50 

Spangler,  Greene,  and  Marshall's  Elements  of  Steam-engineering 8vo,  3  oo 

Thomas's  Steam-turbines 8vo,  4  oo 

Thurston's  Handbook  of  Engine  and  Boiler  Trials,  and  the  Use  of  the  Indi- 
cator and  the  Prony  Brake 8vo,  5  oo 

Handy  Tables.  , 8vo,  i  50 

Manual  of  Steam-boilers,  their  Designs,  Construction,  and  Operation..8vo,  5  oo 

15 


Thurston's  Manual  of  the  Steam-engine 2  vols.,  8vo,  10  oo 

Part  I.     History,  Structure,  and  Theory 8vo,  6  oo 

Part  II.     Design,  Construction,  and  Operation 8vo,  6  oo 

Stationary  Steam-engines 8vo,  2  50 

Steam-boiler  Explosions  in  Theory  and  in  Practice 12mo,  i  yo 

Wehrenfenning's  Analysis  and  Softening  of  Boiler  Feed-water  (Patterson)   8vo,  4  oo 

Weisbach's  Heat,  Steam,  and  Steam-engines.     (Du  Bois.) 8vo,  5  oo 

Whitham's  Steam-engine  Design 8vo,  5  oo 

Wood's  Thermodynamics,  Heat  Motors,  and  Refrigerating  Machines.  .  .8vo,  4  oo 

MECHANICS  PURE  AND  APPLIED. 

Church's  Mechanics  of  Engineering 8vo,    6  oo 

Notes  and  Examples  in  Mechanics 8vo,    2  oo 

Dana's  Text-book  of  Elementary  Mechanics  for  Colleges  and  Schools.  .  12010,     i  50 
Du  Bois's  Elementary  Principles  of  Mechanics: 

Vol.      I.     Kinematics 8vo,    3  50 

VoL    II.     Statics 8vo,    4  oo 

Mechanics  of  Engineering.     Vol.    I Small  4to,    7  50 

Vol.  II Small  4to,  10  oo 

*  Greene's  Structural  Mechanics 8vo,    2  50 

James's  Kinematics  of  a  Point  and  the  Rational  Mechanics  of  a  Particle. 

Large  12mo,     2  oo 

*  Johnson's  (W.  W.)  Theoretical  Mechanics 12mo,    3  oo 

Lanza's  Applied  Mechanics 8vo,    7  50 

*  Martin's  Text  Book  on  Mechanics,  Vol.  I,  Statics 12mo,     i   25 

Vol.  2,  Kinematics  and  Kinetics  .  .I2mo,     l  50 
Maurer's  Technical  Mechanics 8vo,    4  oo 

*  Merriman's  Elements  of  Mechanics 12mo,     i  oo 

Mechanics  of  Materials 8vo,    5  oo 

*  Michie's  Elements  of  Analytical  Mechanics 8vo,    4  oo 

Robinson's  Principles  of  Mechanism 8vo,    3  oo 

Sanborn's  Mechanics  Problems Large  12mo,     i  50 

Schwamb  and  Merrill's  Elements  of  Mechanism. 8vo,    3  oo 

Wood's  Elements  of  Analytical  Mechanics 8vo,    3  oo 

Principles  of  Elementary  Mechanics 12mo,     i  25 

MEDICAL. 

Abderhalden's  Physiological  Chemistry  in  Thirty  Lectures.     (Hall  and  Defren). 
(In  Press). 

von  Behring's  Suppression  of  Tuberculosis.     (Bolduan.) I2mo,     i  oo 

*  Bolduan's  Immune  Sera i2mo,     i  50 

Davenport's  Statistical  Methods  with  Special  Reference  to  Biological  Varia- 
tions   i6mo,  mor.,     i  50 

Ehrlich's  Collected  Studies  on  Immunity.     (Bolduan.) 8vo,  6  oo 

*  Fischer's  Physiology  of  Alimentation Large  i2mo,  cloth,  2  oo 

de  Fursac's  Manual  of  Psychiatry.     (Rosanoff  and  Collins.) Large  i2mo,  2  50 

Hammarsten's  Text-book  on  Physiological  Chemistry.     (Mandel.) 8vo,  4  oo 

Jackson's  Directions  for  Laboratory  Work  in  Physiological  Chemistry.  ..8vo,  i  25 

Lassar-Cohn's  Practical  Urinary  Analysis.     (Lorenz.) i2mo,  i  oo 

Mandel's  Hand  Book  for  the  Bio-Chemical  Laboratory , . .  i2mo,  i  50 

*  Pauli's  Physical  Chemistry  in  the  Service  of  Medicine.     (Fischer.) .  .  .  .  i2mo,  i  25 

*  Pozzi-Escot's  Toxins  and  Venoms  and  their  Antibodies.     (Cohn.) i2mo,  i  oo 

Rostoski's  Serum  Diagnosis.     (Bolduan.) i2mo,  i  oo 

Ruddiman's  Incompatibilities  in  Prescriptions 8vo,  2  oo 

Whys  in  Pharmacy I2mo,  i  oo 

Salkowski's  Physiological  and  Pathological  Chemistry.     (Orndorff.) 8vo,  2  50 

*  Satterlee's  Outlines  of  Human  Embryology i2mo,  i  25 

Smith's  Lecture  Notes  on  Chemistry  for  Dental  Students 8vo,  2  50 

16 


Steel's  Treatise  on  the  Diseases  of  the  Dog 8vo,  3  50 

*  Whipple's  Typhoid  Fever Large  i2mo,  3  oo 

Woodhull's  Notes  on  Military  Hygiene i6mo,  i  50 

*  Personal  Hygiene i2mo,  i  oo 

Worcester  and  Atkinson's  Small  Hospitals  Establishment  and  Maintenance, 

and  Suggestions  for  Hospital  Architecture,  with  Plans  for  a  Small 

Hospital i2mo,  i  25 

METALLURGY. 

Betts's  Lead  Refining  by  Electrolysis 8vo.  4  oo 

Holland's  Encyclopedia  of  Founding  and  Dictionary  of  Foundry  Terms    Used 

in  the  Practice  of  Moulding 12mo,  3  oo 

Iron  Founder I2mo.  2  50 

Supplement I2mo,  2  50 

Douglas's  Untechnical  Addresses  on  Technical  Subjects I2mo,  i  oo 

Goesel's  Minerals  and  Metals:     A  Reference  Book , .  . .  .  i6mo,  mor.  3  oo 

*  Iles's  Lead-smelting 12mo,  2  50 

Keep's  Cast  Iron 8vo,  2  50 

Le  Chatelier's  High-temperature  Measurements.  (Boudouard — Burgess.)  12mo,  3  oo 

Metcalf's  Steel.     A  Manual  for  Steel-users 12mo,  2  oo 

Miller's  Cyanide  Process 12mo  i  oo 

Minet's  Production  of  Aluminum  and  its  Industrial  Use.     (Waldo.)...  .  12mo,  2  50 

Robine  and  Lenglen's  Cyanide  Industry.     (Le  Clerc.) 8vo,  4  oo 

Ruer's  Elements  of  Metallography.     (Mathewson).     (In  Press.) 

Smith's  Materials  of  Machines 12mo,  i  oo 

Thurston's  Materials  of  Engineering.     In  Three  Parts 8vo,  8  oo 

part  I.     Non-metallic  Materials  of  Engineering,  see  Civil  Engineering, 
page  9. 

Part    II.     Iron  and  Steel 8vo,  3  50 

Part  III.     A  Treatise  on  Brasses.  Bronzes,  and  Other  Alloys  and  tneir 

Constituents 8vo,  2  50 

Ulke's  Modern  Electrolytic  Copper  Refining 8vo,  3  oo 

West's  American  Foundry  Practice I2mo,  2  50 

Moulders  Text  Book 12mo,  2  50 

Wilson's  Chlorination  Process 12mo,  i  50 

Cyanide  Processes 12mo,  i  50 

MINERALOGY. 

Barringer's  Description  of  Minerals  of  Commercial  Value.    Oblong,  morocco,  2  50 

Boyd's  Resources  of  Southwest  Virginia 8vo  3  oo 

Boyd's  Map  of  Southwest  Virginia Pocket-book  form.  2  oo 

*  Browning's  Introduction  to  the  Rarer  Elements 8vo,    i  50 

Brush's  Manual  of  Determinative  Mineralogy.     (Penfield.) 8vo,  4  oo 

Butler's  Pocket  Hand-Book  of  Minerals 16mo,  mor.  3  oo 

Chester's  Catalogue  of  Minerals 8vo,  paper,  i  oo 

Cloth,  i  25 

Crane ' s  Gold  and  Silver.     ( In  Press.) 

Dana's  First  Appendix  to  Dana's  New  "  System  of  Mineralogy. ." .  .Large  8vo,  i  oo 

Manual  of  Mineralogy  and  Petrography 12010  2  no 

Minerals  and  How  to  Study  Them I2mo,  i  50 

System  of  Mineralogy Large  8vo,  half  leather,  12  50 

Text-book  of  Mineralogy 8vo,  4  oo 

Douglas's  Untechnical  Addresses  on  Technical  Subjects I2mo,  i  oo 

Eakle's  Mineral  Tables 8vo,  i  25 

Stone  and  Clay  Products  Used  in  Engineering.     (In  Preparation). 

Egleston's  Catalogue  of  Minerals  and  Synonyms 8vo,  2  50 

Goesel's  Minerals  and  Metals :     A  Reference  Book i6mo,  mor.  3  oo 

Groth's  Introduction  to  Chemical  Crystallography  (Marshall) 12 mo,  i  25 

17 


*  Iddings's  Rock  Minerals 8vo,  5  oo 

Johannsen's  Determination  of  Rock-forming  Minerals  in  Thin  Sections 8vo,  4  oo 

*  Martin's  Laboratory  Guide  to  Qualitative  Analysis  with  the  Blowpipe.  12010,  60 
Merrill's  Non-metallic  Minerals:  Their  Occurrence  and  Uses 8vo,  4  oo 

Stones  for  Building  and  Decoration 8vo,  500 

*  Penfield's  Notes  on  Determinative  Mineralogy  and  Record  of  Mineral  Tests. 

8vo,  paper,  50 
Tables    of    Minerals,    Including    the  Use  of  Minerals  and  Statistics  of 

Domestic  Production 8vo,  i  oo 

Pirsson's  Rocks  and  Rock  Minerals.     (In  Press.) 

*  Richards's  Synopsis  of  Mineral  Characters I2mo,  mor.  i  25 

*  Ries's  Clays:  Their  Occurrence,  Properties,  and  Uses 8vo,  5  oo 

*  Tillman's  Text-book  of  Important  Minerals  and  Rocks 8vo,  2  oo 

MINING. 

*  Beard's  Mine  Gases  and  Explosions Large  i2mo,  3  oo 

Boyd's  Map  of  Southwest  Virginia Pocket-book  form,  2  oo 

Resources  of  Southwest  Virginia 8vo,  3  oo 

Crane ' s  Gold  and  Silver.     ( I  n  Press.) 

Douglas's  Untechnical  Addresses  on  Technical  Subjects 12 mo,  x  oo 

Eissler's  Modern  High  Explosives STTO  4  oo 

Goesel's  Minerals  and  Metals :     A  Reference  Book i6mo,  mor.  3  oo 

Ihlseng's  Manual  of  Mining 8vo,  5  oo 

*  Iles's  Lead-smelting I2mo,  2  50 

Miller's  Cyanide  Process i2mo,  i  oo 

O'Driscoll's  Notes  on  the  Treatment  of  Gold  Ores 8vo,  2  oo 

Peele's  Compressed  Air  Plant  for  Mines.     (In  Press.) 

Riemer's  Shaft  Sinking  Under  Difficult  Conditions.     (Corning  anl  Peels) . .  .8vo,  3  oo 

Robine  and  Lenglen's  Cyanide  Industry.     (Le  Clerc.) 8vo,  4  oo 

*  Weaver's  Military  Explosives 8vo,  3  oo 

Wilson's  Chlorination  Process izmo,  i  50 

Cyanide  Processes i2mo,  i  50 

Hydraulic  and  Placer  Mining.     2d  edition,  rewritten i2mo,  2  50 

Treatise  on  Practical  and  Theoretical  Mine  Ventilation i2mo,  i  25 

SANITARY  SCIENCE. 

Association  of  State  and  National  Food  and  Dairy  Departments,  Hartford  Meeting, 

1906 8vo,  3  o© 

Jamestown  Meeting,  1907 8vo,  3  oo 

*  Bashore's  Outlines  of  Practical  Sanitation 12mo,  i  25 

Sanitation  of  a  Country  House 12mo,  i  oo 

Sanitation  of  Recreation  Camps  and  Parks 12mo,  i  oo 

Folwell's  Sewerage.  (Designing,  Construction,  and  Maintenance.) 8vo,  3  oo 

Water-supply  Engineering 8vo,  4  oo 

Fowler's  Sewage  Works  Analyses 12mo,  2  oo 

Fuertes's  Water-filtration  Works 12mo,  2  50 

Water  and  Public  Health 12mo,  i  50 

Gerhard's  Guide  to  Sanitary  House-inspection 16mo,  i  oo 

*  Modern  Baths  and  Bath  Houses 8vo,  3  oo 

Sanitation  of  Public  Buildings 12mo,  i  50 

Hazen's  Clean  Water  and  How  to  Get  It .- Large  I2mo,  i  50 

Filtration  of  Public  Water-supplies 8vo,  3  oo 

Kinnicut,  Winslow  and  Pratt 's  Purification  of  Sewage.     (In  Press. ) 

Leach's   Inspection   and    Analysis  of  Food  with  Special  Reference   to  State 

Control 8vo,  7  oo 

Jfiason's Examination  of  Water.     (Chemical  and  Bacteriological) 12mo,  i  25 

Water-supply.  (Considered  principally  from  a  Sanitary  Standpoint; . .  8vo,  4  oo 
18 


*  Merriman's  Elements  of  Sanitary  Engineering 8vo,    a  oo 

Ogden's  Sewer  Design I2mo,    2  oo 

Parsoi\s's  Disposal  of  Municipal  Refuse 8vo,     2  oo 

Prescott  and  Winslow's  Elements  of  Water  Bacteriology,  with  Special  Refer- 
ence to  Sanitary  Water  Analysis I2mo, 

*  Price's  Handbook  on  Sanitation 12mo, 

Richards's  Cost  of  Food.     A  Study  in  Dietaries 12mo, 


Cost  of  Living  as  Modified  by  Sanitary  Science 12mo, 


So 
50 
oo 
oo 

Cost  of  Shelter 12mo,  oo 

*  Richards  and  Williams's  Dietary  Computer 8vo,  50 

Richards  and   Woodman's  Air,  Water,  and  Food  from  a  Sanitary  Stand- 
point  8vo,  2  co 

Rideal's  Disinfection  and  the  Preservation  of  Food 8vo,  4  oo 

Sewage  and  Bacterial  Purification  of  Sewage 8vo,  4  oo 

Soper's  Air  and  Ventilation  of  Subways.     (In  Press.) 

Turneaure  and  Russell's  Public  Water-supplies 8vo,  5  oo 

Venable's  Garbage  Crematories  in  America 8vo,  2  oo 

Method  and  Devices  for  Bacterial  Treatment  of  Sewage 8vo,  3  oo 

Ward  and  Whipple ' s  Freshwater  Biology .     (In  Press. ) 

Whipple's  Microscopy  of  Drinking-water 8vo,  3  50 

*  Typhod  Fever Large  12mo,  3  oo 

Value  of  Pure  Water Large  I2mo,  i  oo 

Winton's  Microscopy  of  Vegetable  Foods 8vo,  7  50 

MISCELLANEOUS. 

Emmons's  Geological  Guide-book  of  the  Rocky  Mountain  Excursion  of  the 

International  Congress  of  Geologists Large  8vo,  i  50 

Ferrel's  Popular  Treatise  on  the  Winds 8vo,  4  oo 

Fitzgerald's  Boston  Machinist i8mo,  i  OD 

Gannett's  Statistical  Abstract  of  the  World 24mo,  75 

Raines's  American  Railway  Management 12mo,  2  50 

*  Hanusek's  The  Microscopy  of  Technical  Products.     (Winton"1 8vo,  5  oo 

Ricketts's  History  of  Rensselaer  Polytechnic  Institute   1824-1894. 

Large  i2mo,  3  oo 

Rotherham's  Emphasized  New  Testament 0 Large  8vo,  2  oo 

Standage's  Decoration  of  Wood,  Glass,  Metal,  etc 12mo,  2  oo 

Thome's  Structural  and  Physiological  Botany.     (Bennett) 16mo,  2  25 

Westermaier's  Compendium  of  General  Botany.     (Schneider) 8vo,  2  oo 

Winslow's  Elements  of  Applied  Microscopy 12mo,  i  50 


HEBREW  AND  CHALDEE  TEXT-BOOKS. 

Green's  Elementary  Hebrew  Grammar i2mo,     i  25 

Gesenius's  Hebrew  and  Chaldee  Lexicon  to  the  Old  Testament  Scriptures. 

(Tregelles.) Small  410,  half  morocco,    5  oo 

19 


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